Russian air strikes kill 30 militants after jet downed (Lead)

Moscow Feb 4 (IANS) In a retaliatory move massive Russian air strikes have killed at least 30 militants in Syria where a Russian fighter jet was shot down an official said on Sunday.

"A series of high-precision weapon strikes have been delivered in the area controlled by the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist group which brought down the Russian Su-25 jet by using a portable anti-aircraft missile system in the Syrian province Idlib " Russia s Defense Ministry said. "According to radio intercepts more than 30 Jabhat al-Nusra militants were killed " Xinhua quoted the ministry as saying. Earlier on Saturday the ministry said a pilot survived the fighter jet crash but was later killed in a ground fight with terrorists. The pilot had reported earlier that he ejected by parachute in the area controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra militants. In May 2017 the guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire -- Russia Iran and Turkey -- agreed to set up the Syrian de-escalation zones in Syria which includes Idlib province. --IANS qd/