A Russian airliner that crashed in Egypt, killing all 224 people on board, broke up in the air, a Russian aviation official said on Sunday.
Viktor Sorochenko, an official with the Intergovernmental Aviation Committee, speaking after inspecting the crash site on the Sinai peninsula, said it was too early to talk about conclusions from the crash, Russian news agencies reported.
A militant group affiliated to Islamic State in Egypt had claimed responsibility for bringing down the Kogalymavia Airbus A321 on Saturday “in response to Russian airstrikes that killed hundreds of Muslims on Syrian land”. However, the Egyptian prime minister disputed the claim, suggesting militants in northern Sinai, where the country is fighting an Islamic insurgency, did not have the weaponry to hit a flight at 9,000 metres (31,000ft). The Russian transport minister had also previously expressed scepticism about the militants’ claim.
Russia, an ally of Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, launched airstrikes against opposition groups in Syria, including Isis, on 30 September. The fact that the airliner broke up in the air does not necessarily indicate a bomb was the cause.
Russia’s emergencies ministry has sent more than 100 workers to Egypt to help recover bodies and examine evidence. Staff from the French accident investigation agency, BEA, were also on their way there. The BEA is involved because the Airbus A321-200 was designed in France.
Viktor Sorochenko, an official with the Intergovernmental Aviation Committee, speaking after inspecting the crash site on the Sinai peninsula, said it was too early to talk about conclusions from the crash, Russian news agencies reported.
A militant group affiliated to Islamic State in Egypt had claimed responsibility for bringing down the Kogalymavia Airbus A321 on Saturday “in response to Russian airstrikes that killed hundreds of Muslims on Syrian land”. However, the Egyptian prime minister disputed the claim, suggesting militants in northern Sinai, where the country is fighting an Islamic insurgency, did not have the weaponry to hit a flight at 9,000 metres (31,000ft). The Russian transport minister had also previously expressed scepticism about the militants’ claim.
Russia, an ally of Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, launched airstrikes against opposition groups in Syria, including Isis, on 30 September. The fact that the airliner broke up in the air does not necessarily indicate a bomb was the cause.
Russia’s emergencies ministry has sent more than 100 workers to Egypt to help recover bodies and examine evidence. Staff from the French accident investigation agency, BEA, were also on their way there. The BEA is involved because the Airbus A321-200 was designed in France.
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