Syrian rebels said on Saturday that they had brought down a Russian warplane in an area of northern Syria that has seen heavy air strikes, and two rebel sources said they had captured the pilot who was badly injured.
A rebel source told Reuters the Sukhoi plane was shot down over Khan al-Subl town near the city of Saraqeb, close to a major highway that has come under fierce air attack and attempts to advance on the ground by the Syrian army and Iranian-backed militias.
Two rebel sources said the pilot was badly injured after escaping the crash by parachute.
A third rebel source said he was killed.
Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said rebel fractions had shot down a Sukhoi 25 and that the pilot had escaped the crash by parachute, before being captured.
There was no immediate comment from the Russian or Syrian armies.