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A woman rests near rubble in the Syrian town of Darat Izza in Aleppo Province on February 28.
A woman rests near rubble in the Syrian town of Darat Izza in Aleppo Province on February 28.

Live Blog: Tracking Islamic State

Follow all of the latest developments as they happen.

Latest News For February 29

-- The United States Army's elite Delta Force is on the verge of beginning operations to target, capture or kill top IS operatives in Iraq, after several weeks of covert preparation, an administration official with direct knowledge of the force's activities told CNN.

-- Syrian government forces have regained control of a road used by the army to access Aleppo, after making advances against Islamic State fighters, a monitoring group and state television reported.


-- Authorities in Iraq say the death toll from a double bombing at a market in Baghdad’s Shi’ite neighborhood of Sadr City rose to 73 on February 29 after several critically wounded victims died overnight.

-- Tajik media are reporting that a woman known to be the second wife of Gulmurod Halimov, the fugitive Tajik colonel who defected to the IS group, has left for Syria along with the couple's four young children.

-- The UN is poised to begin delivering aid to people living in besieged areas of Syria, making use of a truce brokered by the United States and Russia. The first deliveries are planned for Feb. 29, with aid due to reach about 150,000 Syrians in besieged areas over the next five days.

-- A truce negotiated between Syrian rebels and the government has caused a dramatic decrease in airstrikes around rebel-held territory, but there were few celebrations, with many residents suspecting a trick, CNN report.

* NOTE: Live blog posts are time-stamped according to Central European Time (CET).

09:45 24.11.2015

Turkey's Hurriyet Daily is reporting that Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has spoken with his Chief of Staff, Gen. Hulusi Akar, as well as Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioğlu regarding the incident.

The Turkish Prime Minister's Office also said that Turkey will consult with NATO and the United Nations on the developments at the border with Syria.

09:48 24.11.2015

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is due to visit Istanbul tomorrow. That planned visit will not be altered in the wake of the shooting down of the Russian Su-24 jet, a Turkish foreign ministry official has told AFP.

09:54 24.11.2015

Turkey's Anadolu Agency is quoting Turkish presidential sources as saying that the Russian Su-24 jet was shot down over Turkish air space.

"Turkish jets shot down a warplane believed to be a Russian type SU-24 for violating Turkey's airspace near its border with Syria on Tuesday, Turkish presidential sources said.

The warplane went down in Syria's northwestern Turkmen town of Bayirbucak near Turkey’s border within the framework of engagement rules, the sources added."

The Turkish General Staff also said that the Su-24 had been given 10 warnings within five minutes. It was downed by two F-16s, the General Staff added.

Russia's version of events contradicts the Turkish statements. Russia is insisting that the plane was shot down by surface-to-air fire and that it had never entered Turkish air space.

09:56 24.11.2015

NATO is set to make a statement about the downing of the Russian Su-24 jet in Syria, the pro-Kremlin RIA Novosti is reporting, citing a NATO source.

10:08 24.11.2015

Abdullah Bozkurt, a journalist with Turkey's Today's Zaman newspaper, says that local Turkmen sources in Syria are saying that both the Russian pilots from the downed Su-24 plane have been captured.

One is injured and the other is in good health, the sources say. The claims have not been verified.

11:26 24.11.2015

Here's video of the plane downing:

Russian Jet Shot Down Near Syria-Turkey Border
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No media source currently available

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11:28 24.11.2015

RT is running a piece with a video which it says shows a dead Russian pilot surrounded by rebels.

According to Reuters, the video was sent by a rebel group operating in the northwestern area of Syria, where groups including the Free Syrian Army are active but Islamic State has no known presence.

11:29 24.11.2015

Reuters say a Syrian rebel group has sent them a video that purports to show one of the Russian pilots from the downed Su-24 jet immobile on the ground.

The group's leader has claimed to Reuters that the pilot is dead.

11:34 24.11.2015

Both the Russian and Turkish militaries have tweeted images that they say prove where the Russian Su-24 jet was before it was shot down.

Turkey has released what it says is a radar print showing the Russian jet before it was shot down, indicating it was in Turkish air space.

Russia's Ministry of Defense has released a satellite picture that it claims shows the Su-24 was in Syrian airspace.

11:38 24.11.2015

Turkish journalist Abdullah Bozkurt asks an important question: why did Turkey shoot down the Su-24 today when it has previously ignored other reported incursions into its airspace?

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