Amman, Jordan • Islamic State militants captured a Jordanian pilot after his warplane crashed in Syria while carrying out airstrikes Wednesday, making him the first foreign military member to fall into the extremists' hands since an international coalition launched its bombing campaign against the group months ago.
Images of the pilot being pulled out of a lake and hustled away by masked jihadis underscored the risks for the U.S. and its Arab and European allies in the air campaign.
The capture presented a nightmare scenario for Jordan, which vowed to continue its fight against the IS, which has overrun large parts of Syria and Iraq and beheaded foreign captives.
The cause of the crash was not immediately known, but the U.S. military insisted the plane was not shot down.
"Evidence clearly indicates that ISIL did not down the aircraft as the terrorist organization is claiming," Central Command said in a statement.
A coalition official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the pilot was in an F-16 fighter and was able to eject.
The Islamic State is known to have Russian-made Igla anti-aircraft missiles. The shoulder-fired weapon has long been in the Syrian and Iraqi government arsenals; it was used during the 1991 Gulf War by Iraqi forces to bring down a British Tornado jet. Militants in Chechnya have used them to down Russian helicopters.
The warplane went down near the Syrian city of Raqqa, the de facto IS capital.
Images showed the pilot — in a white shirt, nude from the waist down and sopping wet — being pulled by gunmen out of what appeared to be a lake. Another picture showed him surrounded by more than a dozen fighters, some masked.
The plane's glass canopy was taken by militants and put on display in the main square of Raqqa, according to the Raqqa Media Center, a group that operates in areas under the extremists' rule with the group's consent.
Jordan identified the pilot as 1st Lt. Mu'ath Safi al-Kaseasbeh. His cousin Marwan al-Kaseasbeh confirmed to the AP that the photos were of Mu'ath.
The United States and Arab allies have been striking the Islamic State in Syria since Sept. 23, and U.S. and other international warplanes have been waging an air campaign against the extremists in Iraq for even longer.
Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates are participating in the Syria airstrikes, with logistical support from Qatar.
IS has beheaded dozens of Syrian soldiers it captured around the country. The group has beheaded three Americans and two Britons. In Iraq, it has shot down at least one Iraqi military helicopter; the pilots died in the crash.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it had confirmation from activists on the ground that the aircraft was shot down, either by a Russian-made anti-aircraft missile or by heavy machine-gun fire.
A suicide bomber infiltrated a group of pro-government Sunni militiamen Wednesday at a military base south of Baghdad as they gathered to collect their paychecks. The bomber detonated his explosives, killing at least 24 militiamen and soldiers and wounding 55 others, police said.
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center of the Islamic State group, a militant extremist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows members of the Islamic State group with a captured pilot, center, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Activists say that Islamic State fighters have shot down a warplane believed to be from the U.S.-led coalition over Syria. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center of the Islamic State group)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center of the Islamic State group, a militant extremist group, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows a photograph of the Jordanian military identity card of the pilot identifying him as Muath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group fighters shot down a warplane on Wednesday believed to be from the U.S.-led coalition over Syria and captured its pilot, activists said. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center of the Islamic State group)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which is affiliated with the Islamic State group, a militant extremist group, shows members of the Islamic State group with a captured pilot, center, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot after shooting down his warplane while conducting airstrikes over Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, in the extremists first successful downing of an aircraft from the international coalition waging an air campaign against the group. This image has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, affiliates with the Islamic State group, a militant extremist group shows militants with a captured pilot, center, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot after shooting down his warplane while conducting airstrikes over Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, in the extremists first successful downing of an aircraft from the international coalition waging an air campaign against the group.(AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows a photograph of the Jordanian military identity card of a pilot identifying him as Muath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured al-Kaseasbeh, a Jordanian pilot, after shooting down his warplane over Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, in the extremists first successful downing of an aircraft from the international coalition waging an air campaign against the group. The pilot's family confirmed al-Kaseasbeh is shown in a series of images released by the Raqqa Media Center. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a captured pilot, center, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot, Muath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh, after shooting down his warplane over Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, in the extremists first successful downing of an aircraft from the international coalition waging an air campaign against the group. The pilots family confirmed that it is al-Kaseasbeh shown in the image. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a captured pilot, second right, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot, Muath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh, after shooting down his warplane over Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, in the extremists first successful downing of an aircraft from the international coalition waging an air campaign against the group. The pilots family confirmed that it is al-Kaseasbeh shown in the image. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a captured pilot, center, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot, Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh, after his warplane went down in Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, the first such capture since the international coalition's air campaign against the group began. The pilot's family confirmed that it is al-Kaseasbeh shown in the image. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a captured pilot, center, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot, Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh, after his warplane went down in Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, the first such capture since the international coalition's air campaign against the group began. The pilot's family confirmed that it is al-Kaseasbeh shown in the image. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a captured pilot, center right, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot, Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh, after his warplane went down in Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, the first such capture since the international coalition's air campaign against the group began. The pilot's family confirmed that it is al-Kaseasbeh shown in the image. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows militants with a captured pilot, center right, wearing a white shirt in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured a Jordanian pilot, Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh, after his warplane went down in Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, the first such capture since the international coalition's air campaign against the group began. The pilot's family confirmed that it is al-Kaseasbeh shown in the image. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows a photograph of the Jordanian military identity card of a pilot identifying him as Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured al-Kaseasbeh, a Jordanian pilot, after his warplane went down in Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, the first such capture since the international coalition's air campaign against the group began. The pilot's family confirmed al-Kaseasbeh is shown in a series of images released by the Raqqa Media Center. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
This image posted by the Raqqa Media Center, which monitors events in territory controlled by Islamic State militants with the permission of the extremist group, shows a photograph of the Jordanian military identity card of a pilot identifying him as Mu'ath Safi Yousef al-Kaseasbeh in Raqqa, Syria, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State group militants captured al-Kaseasbeh, a Jordanian pilot, after his warplane went down in Syria, Jordan said Wednesday, the first such capture since the international coalition's air campaign against the group began. The pilot's family confirmed al-Kaseasbeh is shown in a series of images released by the Raqqa Media Center. (AP Photo/Raqqa Media Center)
Relatives and friends of the Jordanian pilot captured by the Islamic State group, 1st Lt. Mu'ath Safi al-Kaseasbeh, gather in the Kaseasbeh tribe chamber in the town of Aey near Al Karak, in southern Jordan, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State militants captured a Jordanian pilot after his warplane crashed in Syria while conducting airstrikes Wednesday, the first foreign military member to fall into the extremists' hands since an international coalition launched its bombing campaign against the group months ago. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh)
Relatives and friends of the Jordanian pilot captured by the Islamic State group, 1st Lt. Mu'ath Safi al-Kaseasbeh, gather in the Kaseasbeh tribe chamber in the town of Aey near Al Karak, in southern Jordan, Wednesday, Dec. 24, 2014. Islamic State militants captured a Jordanian pilot after his warplane crashed in Syria while conducting airstrikes Wednesday, the first foreign military member to fall into the extremists' hands since an international coalition launched its bombing campaign against the group months ago. (AP Photo/Raad Adayleh)
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