Video has emerged purporting to show Syrian rebels blowing up a Russian helicopter searching for two pilots of a downed fighter jet.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the search and rescue helicopter had come under fire from Syrian rebels and was forced to land after being hit by a rocket in the province of Latakia.
The helicopter was one of two searching for the pilots of a Russian SU-24 fighters jet which had earlier been shot down by two Turkish F-16s near the Syrian border.
A still from the video shows the moment the Russian helicopter explodes. (Supplied)
The video shows the rebels setting up a US-made TOW anti-tank missile system before firing it at the Russian helicopter, which is sitting at rest some distance away.
The wire-guided missile can be seen tracking towards its target before hitting the helicopter and exploding, sparking chants of "Allah Akbar" from those near the camera.
Russia has since confirmed one marine was killed in the rescue mission.
"A search and rescue operation to evacuate the Russian pilots from the crash site was launched with the help of two Mi-8 helicopters," military spokesman General Sergei Rudskoi said in televised comments.
November 25, 2015: Recently emerged footage alleges to show the two Russian marines who ejected their fighter jet after it was hit with a missile near the Turkish-Syrian border getting shot at by ground forces.
"During the operation, one of the helicopters was damaged by gunfire and had to land. A soldier was killed."
The video comes as another circulates allegedly showing the one of the dead pilots from the Russian SU-24 jet surrounded by Syrian rebels.
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