Israeli Fighter Jet Image by Getty Images

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel’s Security Cabinet instructed the Israel Defense Forces to continue to act against Iran’s military buildup in Syria and to continue security coordination with Russia.

The instructions issued on Tuesday come a week after the downing of a Russian surveillance plane by Syrian anti-aircraft fire in the area of an Israeli air strike on a facility of the Syrian armed forces. Fifteen Russian troops were killed in the incident.

The Security Cabinet blamed the incident on the “irresponsible actions” of the Syrian military, saying in a statement Tuesday following its meeting that the Cabinet ministers “share the sorrow of the families in Russia and the Russian people for the loss of the lives of the crew of the Russian plane as a result of irresponsible actions by the Syrian army.”

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Russia’s Defense Ministry on Sunday blamed the crash on what it said was misleading information provided by Israel’s Air Force about the location of its airstrikes on targets in Syria, preventing the Russian plane in the area from moving to a safe zone, a charge that Israel has denied.

The Security Cabinet meeting came a day after Russia announced it would provide the Syrian military with its state-of-the-art S-300 air defense system and said it would jam radars of military planes striking from off the coast of the Mediterranean.

The jamming technology reportedly was delivered to Syria on Monday and the S-300 system could arrive in up to two weeks.

Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at [email protected], or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher

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