The Syrian missile air defense system harassed a Turkish warplane which was on patrol in Turkey's southern Hatay province bordering Syria, a Turkish military statement said Thursday.

"One of our F-16 fighter jets was harassed by SA-2 missile system launched in Syria on Wednesday," said the statement by the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces.

The statement said four Turkish F-16 fighter jets on Wednesday scrambled as two SU-24 Syrian aircraft approached the Turkish airspace near Hatay.

The Syrian planes were 6.67 km and 8.33 km away from the Turkish border, it noted.

Interception of each other's fighter jets between the two countries has been taking place with increasing frequency since a Turkish warplane was shot down in 2012 by the Syrian army after it reportedly violated the Syrian airspace.

Turkey downed a Syrian MI-17 attack helicopter last September, saying it made a 2-km incursion into its airspace.