Folks mourn on the grave of flight attendant Hokume Aliyeva throughout a funeral of the crew members of the Azerbaijan Airways Embraer 190 killed in a lethal airplane crash in Kazakhstan this week, on the II Alley of Honor in Baku, Azerbaijan, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024.
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Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev stated Sunday that the Azerbaijani airliner that crashed final week was shot down by Russia, albeit unintentionally, and criticized Moscow for making an attempt to “hush up” the difficulty for days.
“We are able to say with full readability that the airplane was shot down by Russia. (…) We’re not saying that it was accomplished deliberately, nevertheless it was accomplished,” he advised Azerbaijani state tv.
Aliyev stated that the airliner, which crashed Wednesday in Kazakhstan, was hit by fireplace from the bottom over Russia and “rendered uncontrollable by digital warfare.” Aliyev accused Russia of making an attempt to “hush up” the difficulty for a number of days, saying he was “upset and shocked” by variations of occasions put ahead by Russian officers.
“Sadly, for the primary three days we heard nothing from Russia besides delirious variations,” he stated.
The crash killed 38 of 67 folks on board. The Kremlin stated that air protection programs had been firing close to Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, the place the airplane tried to land, to deflect a Ukrainian drone strike.
Aliyev stated Azerbaijan made three calls for to Russia in reference to the crash.
“First, the Russian facet should apologize to Azerbaijan. Second, it should admit its guilt. Third, punish the responsible, convey them to legal duty and pay compensation to the Azerbaijani state, the injured passengers and crew members,” he stated.
Aliyev famous that the primary demand was “already fulfilled” when Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to him on Saturday. Putin referred to as the crash a “tragic incident” although stopped in need of acknowledging Moscow’s duty.
He stated that an investigation into the crash was ongoing, and that “the ultimate model (of occasions) will likely be recognized after the black bins are opened.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin, proper, and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev attend a gathering with railway trade veterans and staff to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM) development on the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Monday, April 22, 2024.
Gavriil Grigorov/AP/Pool Sputnik Kremlin
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Gavriil Grigorov/AP/Pool Sputnik Kremlin
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov advised Russian state media on Sunday that Putin had spoken to Aliyev over the telephone once more, however didn’t present particulars of the dialog.
The Kremlin additionally stated a joint investigation by Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan was underway on the crash website close to town of Aktau in Kazakhstan. The airplane was flying from Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, to Grozny when it turned towards Kazakhstan, a whole lot of kilometers (miles) throughout the Caspian Sea from its meant vacation spot, and crashed whereas attempting to land.
Passengers and crew who survived the crash advised Azerbaijani media that they heard loud noises on the plane because it was circling over Grozny.
On this picture taken from a video launched by the administration of Mangystau area, part of Azerbaijan Airways’ Embraer 190 lies on the bottom close to the airport of Aktau, Kazakhstan, on Thursday.
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Dmitry Yadrov, head of Russia’s civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia, stated Friday that because the airplane was making ready to land in Grozny in deep fog, Ukrainian drones had been concentrating on town, prompting authorities to shut the world to air site visitors.
The crash is the second lethal civil aviation accident linked to combating in Ukraine. Malaysia Airways Flight 17 was downed with a Russian surface-to-air missile, killing all 298 folks aboard, because it flew over the world in japanese Ukraine managed by Moscow-backed separatists in 2014.
Russia has denied duty, however a Dutch court docket in 2022 convicted two Russians and a pro-Russia Ukrainian man for his or her function in downing the airplane with an air protection system introduced into Ukraine from a Russian navy base.
