passenger plane carrying 172 passengers from Tehran to Damascus made an emergency landing at the Russian-controlled Hmeimim Air Base in Syria on Thursday after coming under fire from Syrian air defenses, Russia said on Friday.
The Syrian forces were responding to Israeli strikes on targets in Syria, Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said, quoted by Interfax and other Russian agencies.
The incident took place a month after a Ukraine International Airlines passenger plane crashed shortly after take-off from Tehran, killing all 176 people on board. Iran later said its forces had shot it down unintentionally due to human error.
The Syrian defense ministry said on Thursday it had intercepted Israeli missiles over Damascus that were fired at military targets in southern Syria. Israel has declined to comment.
The Airbus A320 (AIR.PA) had been coming into land at Damascus International Airport when it was forced to divert to the nearest alternative airfield, the Hmeimim Air Base near Latakia in northwest Syria, which is operated by the Russian military.
Konashenkov did not name the airline but data from Flight Radar indicated it was a Syrian Cham Wings plane. The airline could not immediately be reached for comment.
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