Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to step up military force against the Islamic State in Syria after the Kremlin confirmed a bomb planted by the terrorist group brought down a Russian passenger plane over Egypt late last month.
The head of Russia’s security service confirmed suspicions Monday evening that the jet had been blown out of the sky Oct. 31 by a homemade explosive device placed on board by Islamic State terrorists, Reuters reported.
“Our air force’s military work in Syria must not simply be continued,” Putin said Tuesday before a meeting at the Kremlin. “It must be intensified in such a way that the criminals understand that retribution is inevitable.”
The Russian security service has offered a $50 million reward for help hunting down the terrorists responsible for bombing the plane.
The bombing of the Metrojet plane over the Sinai as it headed to St. Petersburg, which killed 224 people, came two weeks before Islamic State terrorists killed 129 people in a series of attacks in Paris.
French President Francois Hollande also vowed to go after the terrorist group in Syria following the terror attack.
