Islamic State says shot down Iraqi fighter jetJune 18, 2015 - 10:43 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Islamic State said on Thursday, June 18 it had shot down an Iraqi fighter plane north of the city of Ramadi in Anbar Province, according to Reuters. It was not immediately possible to independently confirm the claim made on one of Islamic State's Twitter accounts. A member of an anti-Islamic State Sunni force called Sahwa (Awakening) said an Iraqi fighter jet, a Russian-made Su-25, was seen in flames as it crashed after being shot down north of Ramadi. Iraq's government relies on a U.S.-led coalition and Iranian-backed Shi'ite militias in its fight against Islamic State, which holds a third of the country as well as parts of neighboring Syria. The Islamic State Twitter site said the fighter jet had been shot down as it conducted a raid on areas north of Ramadi, the provincial capital of Sunni heartland Anbar. Islamic State militants seized Ramadi last month and the city is a focal point of efforts to slow the group's advances in Iraq, a major oil producer and OPEC member. Photo: AFP Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Police try to impede Armenian Church head’s access to war memorial Police tried to stop the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Catholicos Karekin II, from visiting a war memorial. Greece says ready to help as Armenia fights flooding consequences Greece is ready to assist Armenia in combatting the consequences of deadly floods in the country’s north. “He will leave”: Protest leader no longer demands meeting with Pashinyan Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan no longer demands a meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Lemkin Institute petition seeks release of Armenians in Azerbaijan The Lemkin Institute is deeply concerned about the continued illegal detention of political prisoners from Karabakh in Azerbaijan. |