The bodies of the pilots of a Turkish jet shot down by Syria last month have been found.
On June 22nd a F-4 Phantom Turkish Fighter jet was shot down by Syria, claiming it had violated Syrian airspace. The two pilots were found by a US deep sea exploration vessel according to Turkey' TRT television.
The incident caused tension between Turkey and Syria, although Syria's President Bashar al-Assad said he regretted the move 100%.
Syria claimed that the fighter jet penetrated its air space at low level using a corydor utilized in the past by the Israeli Air Force. While Turkey accepts that the aircraft briefly entered Syrian air space, it argues that the attack occurred over international waters after the fighter jet was alerted by Turkish controllers and left.
A meeting of NATO ambassadors strongly backed Turkey's account of events. Turkey is a member of NATO.
While none of the evidence has been made public, it would appear that this was a strong message by Syria to Western nations that may be contemplating an attack to stop the carnage in that country.
Meanwhile yesterday a Human Rights Watch Report, details gruesome torture since March 2011. The report has detailed accounts and names of those in charge of the torture sites. Human Rights Watch called on the United Nations Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and to adopt targeted sanctions against officials credibly implicated in the abuses.
The United Nations said on Tuesday that more than 9,000 people had been killed since the Assad regime started its year long assault on its own people.
"Violence on the ground has continued unabated, resulting in scores of people killed and injured," Robert Serry, the U.N. special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, told the 15-nation Security Council.
"Credible estimates put the total death toll since the beginning of the uprising one year ago to more than 9,000," he said. "It is urgent to stop the fighting and prevent a further violent escalation of the conflict." Source: Reuters
