Syria knew it was a Turkish jet: intel

ANKARA

EPA Photo

Syrian officials were fully aware that a jet their forces downed on June 22 was Turkish as they used the Turkish word for “neighbor” to refer to the aircraft, a Turkish intelligence official has said, according to daily Hürriyet.

Damascus had claimed that officials were unaware of the jet's nationality, but Turkish intelligence units have disputed such reports.

"We have recordings of the Syrian dialogues before and after," a Turkish intelligence officer said. "They refer to our jet as 'komşu' [neighbor]. They use the Turkish word, and then they use the Arabic word for plane."

The jet already had its identification, friend or foe (IFF) system turned on, allowing it to be recognized by others, another official added.

"Syrian officials should have automatically known that it was a Turkish jet by looking at their radar system," the official said.

Air force chief briefs Turkish president

Commander of the Turkish Air Forces Gen. Mehmet Erten briefed President Abdullah Gül in Istanbul over the Turkish jet downed by Syria on June 22 today. The meeting took place in the presidential residence in Istanbul's Tarabya neighborhood.