In the midst of rising tensions, a US drone was destroyed by Russian aircraft decoys over Syria.

Above the weekend, a decoy from a Russian fighter plane destroyed one of the US Air Force's drones above Syria. "A Russian decoy struck a US MQ-9 and severely damaged its propeller," said Lt. Gen. Alex Grinkevich, head of the US Air Forces Regional Command, in a statement Tuesday. Fortunately, the MQ-9 crew was able to continue flying and safely return the jet to home base." The commander also stated that the US drone was on a mission in Syria to combat ISIS militants. He also charged the Russian fighter plane with "blatant disregard for flight safety" and Russian soldiers in Syria with "reckless, unprovoked, and unprofessional behavior." This event is the latest in a series of clashes between Russian and US armed personnel in Syria.