Turkey returns body of Russian pilot whose warplane it shot down

[webfact]

Turkey returns body of Russian pilot whose warplane it shot down



MOSCOW: -- The body of a Russian pilot whose warplane was shot down by Turkey on the Syrian border was being returned home on Sunday.

He died after ethnic Turkmen rebels opened fire as both crew members parachuted to the ground when their plane was hit on Tuesday. Only the navigator survived. Another Russian was killed in a rescue attempt.

As tensions rise with Moscow, Turkey’s Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu warned that because of different coalitions operating in Syria with differing objectives, further incidents could follow unless there is information sharing and coordination.

He told a news conference in Ankara: “One of our priorities is to maintain coordination and communication with Russia regarding their operations in Syria to avoid similar incidents in the future.”

But Moscow, which denies Ankara’s claims the plane ever violated Turkish airspace, remains furious.

President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian leader was “mobilised, fully mobilised, to the extent the circumstances demand. The circumstances are unprecedented. The gauntlet thrown down to Russia is unprecedented. So naturally the reaction is in line with this threat.”

Just hours after Peskov was interviewed on Russian TV on Saturday, a decree imposing a raft of punitive economic sanctions against Turkey was published, underlining the depth of the Kremlin’s anger.

Putin had earlier warned of “serious consequences” for what he described as a stab in the back administered by “the accomplices of terrorists”.

Russia and Turkey have accused each other of aiding ISIL, but both say they are battling the militants who have taken swathes of land in Iraq and Syria.

-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2015-11-30

[craigt3365]

Glad Turkey didn't play politics with this.

[ggt]

I could not help but wonder if the Russian pilot's organs had been harvested...this is the world we now live in...

[tigermonkey]

I could not help but wonder if the Russian pilot's organs had been harvested...this is the world we now live in...

Organ harvesting (if done) would probably not be done by the rebels in the field, but by the Turks at a later time. probably the organs would be unsuitable by then.

There was a video from the rebel captors showing the Russian pilot dead with his eyes gouged out. I have no idea whether the video was actually of the pilot, but it was certainly someone. We must remember that this video ( and the pilot murder ) were not done by daesh / isis but by the 'moderate' rebels in that area.

[Tchooptip]

The body of the pilot they have assassinated by shooting him in the back without warning?

[Thorgal]

The body of the pilot they have assassinated by shooting him in the back without warning?

Yes, the death penalty after 17 seconds...

[HappyinNE]

I always understood that shooting at someone bailing out of an aircraft that was shot down was a War Crime. If it is not a War Crime it is shooting at a person who is helpless. I would not consider these barbarians as possible to be associated with.