Russia's defence ministry said early on Tuesday that one of its military aircraft with 14 people on board disappeared from radar screens over Syria.

The ministry immediately pointed a finger at Israeli and French forces who, it said, were mounting aerial attacks on targets in Syria. But speaking to CNN, a US official said Washington believed the aircraft was inadvertently shot down by anti-aircraft artillery operated by Moscow's ally, the Syrian government. According to the same publication, the missile system was sold to Syria by Russia several years ago.

Around the time the Il-20 electronic reconnaissance plane disappeared, both Russian and Syrian media reported that missile defence batteries had responded to an attack from "enemy missiles.”

The defence ministry in Moscow said the aircraft was returning to the Russian-run Hmeymim airbase in Latakia province when, at about 11pm Moscow time (20:00 GMT) on Monday, it disappeared from radar screens.

"The trace of the Il-20 on flight control radars disappeared during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets on Syrian facilities in Latakia province," the statement was quoted as saying.

The fate of the 14 people on board the missing plane is unknown, and a rescue operation has been organised out of the Hmeymim base, the ministry said.

Russia's military operation in Syria, which began in late 2015, has turned the tide of the conflict in favour of Moscow's ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, in his fight against rebels.

But it has come at a cost to Russia.

In December 2016, a Russian plane carrying dozens of Red Army choir singers, dancers and musicians crashed into the Black Sea on the way to Syria, killing all 92 people on board.

In March this year, a Russian military transport plane crashed when coming in to land at the Hmeymim base, killing all 39 people on board.