Chicago (AFP) - President Barack Obama said he was "deeply disturbed" by video of a white Chicago policeman shooting dead a black teenager, in the latest such incident to roil the United States.

Graphic footage released shortly after officer Jason Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder on Tuesday has reignited impassioned debate about the use of force by law enforcement in the US, with Chicago left dangerously on edge.

Protesters there have likened the Laquan McDonald killing to that of Michael Brown, the black teenager shot dead by a white policeman in Ferguson, Missouri last year, triggering 15 months of demonstrations in major US cities over perceived police brutality against black men.

A small band of demonstrators hit the chilly Chicago streets for a second night in a row Wednesday, reportedly confronting police officers.

Chicago police initially said that McDonald was high on the hallucinogen PCP, acting erratically and then lunged at officers with a knife when he was shot 16 times in October 2014.

But police dashcam video showed the 17-year-old walking away when Van Dyke opened fire and made no threatening gestures to justify the use of deadly force, prosecutors say.

"Like many Americans, I was deeply disturbed by the footage of the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald," Obama wrote on his official Facebook page.

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Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke, seen in a booking photo obtained November 24, 2015, from the …

"This Thanksgiving, I ask everybody to keep those who've suffered tragic loss in our thoughts and prayers, and to be thankful for the overwhelming majority of men and women in uniform who protect our communities with honor.

"And I'm personally grateful to the people of my hometown for keeping protests peaceful."

Prosecutors and Chicago officials have come under intense criticism for trying to block the release of the video and taking so long to press charges against Van Dyke.

It was the first time a Chicago police officer has been charged with first-degree murder for an on-duty fatality in more than 30 years, the Chicago Tribune reported.

- Dead on road -

Prosecutors said Van Dyke, who joined the Chicago police in 2001, opened fire just 30 seconds after his vehicle pulled up to the scene with McDonald and six seconds after stepping out of it.

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In this screen grab from a video released by the Chicago Police on November 24, 2015, Laquan McDonal …

Shot from an approaching police vehicle, the dashcam video shows McDonald run down the middle of the street towards another police cruiser, hitch up his pants and then start to walk away from Van Dyke and his partner.

His body then spins and strikes the pavement. McDonald lifts his head, moves an arm and then a cloud from another gunshot rises up from his chest as he lies in a fetal position.

He does not move as an officer enters the frame for just long enough to kick a knife away from his prone hand.

None of the officers approaching McDonald try to help him as he bleeds out on the street, writhing once in the remaining minute of video.

The fatal shooting put Van Dyke's record in the force under scrutiny, as it emerged that he had at least 20 complaints filed against him but was never disciplined.

That number since 2010 is below the average allegation rate, according to the Citizen Police Data Project from the University of Chicago.

However, he is still among the "small subset" of officers responsible for a "disproportionate" number of complaints.

- 'Rocked to core' -

The latest case has been particularly painful for Edward Nance, who won a $350,000 civil judgment for injuries sustained when he was arrested by Van Dyke and his partner in 2007.

"It rocked him to the core," Nance’s attorney, Michael McCready, told the Chicago Sun-Times.

"He said if they had done something about this cop in our case, this young boy would still be alive."

Van Dyke was a member of the city's controversial and now-disbanded Tactical Response Unit which patrolled high-crime areas when he pulled Nance over because his car didn't have a front license plate.

Nance -- who worked at a cable company and as a high-school sports referee -- told investigators that Van Dyke's partner slammed his head on the hood of his car and that van Dyke violently handcuffed him and tossed him into a squad car.

The Independent Police Review Board dismissed the complaint because there were "no independent witnesses" and "no way to determine" the cause of Nance's injuries, the Sun-Times reported.

Washington (AFP) - Russia's decision to deploy its most hi-tech air defense system to its base in Syria is raising "significant concerns" for the US military, a US official said Wednesday.

Moscow says it is sending S-400 anti-aircraft missiles to Latakia in northwestern Syria, in a move that comes after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet in the increasingly crowded air space along the border on Tuesday.

The S-400 missiles have a range of about 400 kilometers (250 miles) -- meaning they could reach deep into Turkey or pose a potential threat to US-led coalition planes -- adding yet another dangerous element to an already volatile mix of competing military interests in Syria.

"It's a capable weapons system that poses a significant threat to anyone," a US official speaking on condition of anonymity told AFP. "There are significant concerns related to air operations in Syria."

The United States has since August 2014 led a coalition that has flown more than 8,000 bombing runs against Islamic State group targets in Syria and Iraq.

Russia, too, is dropping bombs in Syria, but these are mainly in different parts of the country from where US and coalition planes are flying. The West says Russia is propping up the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, and not focusing on IS jihadists.

Though Russia and the US-led coalition have agreed on a set of guidelines aimed at ensuring pilots stay out of each other's way, the prospect of batteries of Russian anti-aircraft missiles arriving in Syria is nonetheless raising eyebrows in the Pentagon.

But another US official, also speaking anonymously, said the S-400s "shouldn't" affect coalition flights.

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An image isolated on November 23, 2015, from video posted on the Russian Defence Ministry's webs …

"We are not going to interfere with (the Russians') operations and they are not going to interfere with ours. There's no reason for us to be targeting each other," the official said.

He also noted that Russia in the past week has delivered more than 30 T-90 and T-72 tanks to Latakia.

It was not clear if these were for use by the Russian military or will be provided to forces loyal to Assad.

- 'Russian strike' on aid trucks -

Russia resumed its bombing campaign Wednesday and continued to operate close to the Turkish border.

In northern Syria's Aleppo province, apparent Russian strikes hit the town of Azaz and the border area around the Bab al-Salama crossing, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said.

The monitor and local Syrian activist Maamun al-Khatieb reported three people killed in the strikes, which also set fire to several trucks parked in a lot not far from the crossing.

"Three people have been killed and six injured, most of them are truck drivers," Khatieb told AFP.

He said the trucks were carrying aid and goods for sale, and were parked in a lot where vehicles gather after crossing the border, around three kilometres away.

A US official said he was "aware of reports that a convoy of humanitarian relief vehicles was hit by an air strike today in the vicinity of Azaz."

The official noted that no coalition planes had been near the area for the last 24 hours.

"We are continuing to monitor the situation to determine all of the facts behind the incident," he said.

On Tuesday, Turkey shot down a Russian aircraft along the Syrian border, and rebels killed one of the pilots as he parachuted down after ejecting from the plane. A second pilot was rescued by Russian and Syrian special forces.

A Russian rescue helicopter was also destroyed by rebels, who apparently used a US-made TOW missile.

The prospect that Syrian rebels used US weaponry to kill a Russian further raises concerns that the Syria conflict could devolve into a proxy war.

Pilots of a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 fighter jet prepare before a flight at the Hmeymim air base near Latakia, Syria, in this handout photograph released by Russia's Defence Ministry October 5, 2015. REUTERS/Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation/Handout via Reuters

By Nick Tattersall and Vladimir Soldatkin

ISTANBUL/NIZHNY TAGIL, Russia (Reuters) - Russia sent an advanced missile system to Syria on Wednesday to protect its jets operating there and pledged its air force would keep flying missions near Turkish air space, sounding a defiant note after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet.

Underscoring the message, Russian forces launched a heavy bombardment against insurgent-held areas in Latakia on Wednesday, near where the jet was downed, rebels and a monitoring group said.

The United States and Europe both urged calm and continued dialogue in telephone conversations with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, a sign of international concern at the prospect of any escalation between the former Cold War enemies.

The downing of the jet on Tuesday was one of the most serious publicly acknowledged clashes between a NATO member and Russia for half a century, and further complicated international efforts to battle Islamic State militants in Syria.

President Tayyip Erdogan made no apology, saying his nation had simply been defending its own security and the "rights of our brothers in Syria". He made clear Turkish policy would not change.

Russian officials expressed fury over Turkey's action and spoke of retaliatory measures that were likely to include curbing travel by Russian tourists to Turkish resorts and some restrictions on trade.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described it as a planned act and said it would affect efforts towards a political solution in Syria. Moscow would "seriously reconsider" its relations with Ankara, he said.

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Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, accompanied by his wife Emine Erdogan, adressess teachers during a …

Jets believed to be Russian also hit a depot for trucks waiting to go through a major rebel-controlled border crossing with Turkey, Bab al-Salam, the head of the crossing said.

Syrian jets have struck the area before, but if confirmed to have been carried out by Russia, it would be one of Moscow's closest air strikes to Turkish soil, targeting a humanitarian corridor into rebel-held Syria and a lifeline for ordinary Syrians crossing to Turkey.

DO NOT WANT WAR

But the Russian response was carefully calibrated, indicating Moscow did not want to jeopardize its main objective in the region: to rally international support for its view on how the conflict in Syria should be resolved.

"We have no intention of fighting a war with Turkey," Lavrov said. Erdogan also said Ankara had no intention of escalating tensions with Russia.

In Paris, where deadly attacks on Nov. 13 claimed by Islamic State prompted France to step up its aerial bombing of the militant group in Syria, President Francois Hollande expressed concern over the war of words between Ankara and Moscow.

"We must all work to make sure that the situation (between Russia and Turkey) de-escalates," Hollande told a joint news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

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The windows of the Turkish embassy broken by protesters in reaction after a Russian war plane was sh …

Hollande was due to discuss Syria and the fight against Islamic State with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Thursday.

Putin said an advanced weapons system would be despatched to Russia's Khmeimim air base in Syria's Latakia province.

"I hope that this, along with other measures that we are taking, will be enough to ensure (the safety) of our flights," Putin told reporters, in an apparent warning to Turkey not to try to shoot down any more Russian planes.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was forced to fly missions close to the Turkish border because that was where the militants tended to be located. Russian operations would continue, he said.

MUTUAL RECRIMINATION

Turkey said the downed jet had encroached on Turkish air space and was warned repeatedly to change course, but Russian officials have said the plane was at no time over Turkey.

The crew ejected, and one pilot was shot dead by rebels as he parachuted to the ground. A Russian marine sent to recover the crew was also killed in an attack by rebels.

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An employee looks out of the window of the Turkish embassy damaged by protesters in reaction after a …

The surviving pilot was quoted by Russian agencies as saying the crew "knew the region like the back of their hand", that they did not fly over Turkish air space, and that there were no visual or radio warnings from Turkey.

The Turkish military later released what it said was an audio recording of a warning to a Russian fighter jet before it was shot down near the Syrian border. A voice on the recording can be heard saying "change your heading" in English.

The Turkish military said it had explained the rules of engagement that led to the downing of the jet to Russian military attaches and had tried to rescue the pilots.

At a business event in Istanbul, Erdogan said Turkey had made a "huge effort" to prevent such incidents but that the limits of its patience had been tested after repeatedly warning Russia about air space incursions in recent weeks.

"Nobody should expect us to remain silent against the constant violation of our border security, the ignoring of our sovereign rights," Erdogan said.

Turkey has been angered by Russian air strikes in Syria, particularly those near its border targeting Turkmens, who are Syrians of Turkish descent.

TRADE TIES

Russia made clear it could target Turkey economically.

"The direct consequences could lead to our refusal to take part in a whole raft of important joint projects and Turkish companies losing their positions on the Russian market," Medvedev said in a statement.

Russia is a major exporter of grain and energy to Turkey, and sends over four million tourists each year to Turkish resorts, second only to the number of German tourists.

The Russian government has already said it will discourage Russian tourists from traveling to Turkey, though the immediate impact will be limited because Turkey is now in the off-season.

But while Russia may mothball deals with Turkish firms and curb imports of Turkish goods, it is unlikely to let the fallout affect energy exports that are the core of their economic relationship.

"Erdogan is a tough character, and quite emotional, and if Russia pushes too far in terms of retaliatory action, I think there will inevitably be a counter reaction from Turkey (like) tit-for-tat trade sanctions, perhaps extending to things like the Russia nuclear deal," said Nomura strategist Timothy Ash.

"But I think there is also a clear understanding that any such action is damaging for both sides, and unwelcome. The ball is in Russia's court now," he wrote in a note.

(Additional reporting by Humeyra Pamuk, Can Sezer, Yseim Dikmen, Ayla Jean Yackley and Melih Aslan in Istanbul, Orhan Coskun in Ankara, Seyhmus Cakan in Yayladagi, Turkey, John Davison in Beirut, Maria Kiselyova in Moscow, Paul Carrel and Madeline Chambers in Berlin, Suleiman Al-Khalidi in Amman, Jean-Baptiste Vey and Gareth Jones in Paris; Writing by Christian Lowe; Editing by Philippa Fletcher)

Stranded Iranian migrant has his mouth sewed shut by a colleague during a protest at the Greek-Macedonian border near the Greek village of Idomeni November 26, 2015. REUTERS/Yannis Behrakis

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A Dutch high court on Thursday upheld a government policy of withholding food and shelter to rejected asylum-seekers who refuse to be repatriated, giving legal backing to one of Europe's toughest immigration policies.

The Raad van State or Council of State, which reviews the legality of government decisions, found that the new policy of conservative Prime Minister Mark Rutte does not contravene the European Convention on Human Rights.

A rejected asylum seeker does not have the right to appeal to the European Social Charter, it said.

The Dutch government "has the right, when providing shelter in so-called locations of limited freedom, to require failed asylum-seekers to cooperate with their departure from the Netherlands," a summary of the ruling said.

As the Netherlands toughened its stance on newcomers in recent years, Dutch policy toward asylum-seekers and immigrants has been criticized by NGOs and the United Nations as overly strict.

Thursday's ruling counters an August report by the U.N.'s Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which told the Dutch they should meet migrants' basic needs unconditionally.

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Stranded Iranian migrant has his mouth sewed shut by a colleague during a protest at the Greek-Maced …

"As long as they are in The Netherlands, they have to enjoy minimum standards of living," co-author Ion Diaconu, wrote at the time.

The EU's leading human rights forum, the 47-nation Council of Europe admonished the Netherlands in 2014 for placing asylum seekers in administrative detention and leaving many "irregular immigrants" in legal limbo and destitution.

Europe's worst migrant and refugee crisis since World War Two has led to a surge in support for far right Dutch leader Geert Wilders, who wants to close the borders.

The Netherlands is the eighth-largest destination for asylum seekers in the European Union, accounting for 4 percent of total arrivals in 2014. Total applications last year rose 87 percent to 24,535.

(Reporting by Toby Sterling and Anthony Deutsch; Editing by Toby Chopra)