'Syria plane incident hurts Turkey'

by PressTVGlobalNews

After Turkish F-16 jets intercepted a Syrian Airbus A320, escorting it to Ankara's Esenboga Airport, Moscow now demands an explanation from Turkey regarding the decision. "We are concerned that this emergency situation put at risk the lives and safety of passengers, who included 17 Russian citizen," a Russian Foreign statement said on Thursday,

The statement condemned Turkish authorities for not informing the Russian embassy and letting them 'find out about the incident from news websites.' The plane incident comes amid tensions between Ankara and Damascus, and Turkey's war rhetoric against Syria, which escalated after a Syrian mortar shells landed in a Turkish border town and killed five people on October 3.

In an interview with Press TV, Hisham Jaber, director of the Center of Middle East Studies in Beirut, sheds more light on the issue.