IS Shoots Down Syrian Military Helicopter

The Islamic State (IS) claimed to have downed a Syrian military helicopter in the countryside of the central province of Homs on Tuesday.

The IS affiliated news agency, Amaq, said its fighters shot down the helicopter over the town of Huwaysis in the eastern countryside of Homs, Xinhua reported.

The report comes as intense battles raged on Tuesday between the Syrian army and the IS militiamen in the vicinity of the T4 airbase east of Homs, near the ancient city of Palmyra.

The battles around the T4 airbase were coupled with airstrikes on the IS fighters who were trying to advance, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The UK-based watchdog group said the IS managed to take control of an abandoned military outpost near the airfield.

Meanwhile, the IS news agency said that the IS militants killed 20 Syrian soldiers, including two officers, during the battles in the vicinity of T4.

In April, IS also claimed to have brought down a Syrian MiG-23 fighter plane in the east Damascus countryside.