Jerusalem (CNN) The Israeli military shot down a Syrian fighter jet that entered Israeli airspace on Tuesday afternoon, raising fears of further military escalation in the region.The Sukhoi jet entered two kilometers into Israeli airspace when two Patriot missiles were launched to intercept the aircraft, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement. The fighter jet was being monitored by Israel during its flight.
In the statement, the IDF said it had observed an increase in internal fighting in Syria adjacent to Israel, including increased activity from Syria's air force.
Syria claimed that its jet was flying inside Syrian airspace during an operation against "terrorist groups" when it was hit by Israeli fire, according to a state media report.
"The Israeli enemy targeted one of our warplanes while conducting air raids against these groups in the area of Saida on the outskirts of Wadi al-Yarmouk in the Syrian airspace," a Syrian state TV banner said, quoting a military source.
This is the first time since 2014 that Israel has shot down a Syrian plane.