2 Ukrainian jet fighters shot down in rebel-held region

USA Today

Two Ukrainian fighter jets were shot down Wednesday in the eastern regions of the country that are controlled by Russian-backed separatists, according to Ukraine’s defense ministry.

Defense Ministry spokesman Oleksiy Dmitrashkovsky said the Sukhoi-25 fighters were downed in an area called Savur Mogila, according to the Associated Press and Reuters.

The spokesman said each jet could have been carrying up to two crew members each.

It was the first reported shootdown of a plane over eastern Ukraine since a Malaysia Airlines jet carrying 298 people went down last Thursday, killing everyone aboard. U.S. officials say the Flight MH 17 was apparently brought down by a surface-to-air missile.