JERUSALEM, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Israel rejected on Tuesday Moscow's accusation of causing the loss of a Russian plane during an overnight airstrike in Syria.
A rare announcement released by the military's spokesperson said that "Israel expresses sorrow for the death of the aircrew members of the Russian plane."
According to the statement, Israeli fighter jets targeted a facility of the Syrian armed forces in the coastal province of Latakia overnight. The strike was aimed to prevent the delivery of systems to manufacture "accurate and lethal weapons" from Iran to the militia of Hezbollah in Lebanon, the military said.
"These weapons were meant to attack Israel, and posed an intolerable threat to Israel," the military said.
The Russian-made reconnaissance plane was shot down "due to Syrian anti-aircraft fire," which was launched by the Syrian army against the Israeli F-16 fighter jets, the military said.
"Israel holds the Assad regime ... fully responsible for this incident," the statement read. "Israel also holds Iran and the Hezbollah terror organization accountable for this unfortunate incident."
The statement was issued after Moscow blamed Israel for the loss of the plane. A spokesman of the Russian Defense Ministry said the plane was shot down by the "extensive and inaccurate" fire of the Syrian air defense systems when the Syrian military tried to defend against attacks launched by four Israeli jets on government targets, the Interfax news agency reported.
Following the incident, the Israeli air force launched a probe. Its initial findings suggested that "extensive and inaccurate Syrian anti-aircraft (Surface to Air missile) fire hit and downed the Russian plane," the military said.
The Syrian anti-air batteries fired "indiscriminately" and apparently "did not bother to ensure that no Russian planes were in the air," according to the findings.
The Russian plane was not in the area of operation, and when the Syrian army launched the missiles, Israeli jets were already back to Israeli airspace, the military said.
"Israel will share all the relevant information with the Russian government to review the incident and to confirm the facts in this inquiry," the military stated.
The incident boosted tensions between Israel and Russia.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have held regular meetings to coordinate their moves in the war-torn country.
Israel has carried out some 200 airstrikes over the last 18 months, claiming that the attacks aimed to prevent Iranian weapons convoys and stop Iran from establishing a military foothold in Syria.
