Russia says Kyiv downed POW plane, no survivors

AFP | Moscow                                                       

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Russia yesterday accused Ukraine of shooting down a military transport plane carrying dozens of Ukrainian prisoners headed for a prisoner exchange, killing everyone on board. Kyiv confirmed that a prisoner exchange was due to take place yesterday, but said it had no reliable information on the passengers of the downed plane.

“We currently do not have reliable or comprehensive information on who was on board the plane or in what number,” Ukraine’s main intelligence agency said in a statement. Two people were also killed in a Russian rocket strike in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, local authorities said.

Videos on social media showed a large plane in Russia’s western Belgorod region falling from the sky on its side before crashing in a fireball. Russia’s defence ministry said the IL-76 plane was carrying 65 Ukrainian soldiers captured in Russia’s offensive, six crew and three escorts.

It claimed Ukrainian forces stationed in the Kharkiv border region had fired two missiles at the transport aircraft and described the incident as a “terrorist act”. A Ukrainian government body responsible for issues linked to prisoners of war said earlier that it was probing Russia’s claims. AFP could not independently verify the Russian claims but the incident would represent one of the single most deadly episodes of the full-scale conflict in weeks.

The Russian defence ministry said the crash had come just hours ahead of the planned prisoner exchange at a border crossing in Belgorod. “The Ukrainian leadership was well aware that, in accordance with established practice, the Ukrainian servicemen to be exchanged would be transported by military transport aircraft to the Belgorod aerodrome today,” it said.

Ukraine’s intelligence agency denied this and accused Russia of “endangering the lives and safety of prisoners”. “The Ukrainian side was not informed about the need to ensure the security of the airspace in the area around the city of Belgorod at a set time, as has been done many times in the past,” the intelligence directorate said.

Russian rocket

The threat facing Ukraine was highlighted later yesterday when two people, including a 16-year-old, were killed and eight wounded when a Russian rocket hit the village of Girnyk, Donetsk regional head Vadim Filachkine said, accusing Moscow of targeting civilians. Local Ukrainian media initially cited defence sources saying that the Ukrainian army had downed the plane, and that it was carrying missiles. The claim was later retracted.

In a carefully worded statement published hours after the crash, the Ukrainian army said it would continue to target Russian aircraft in Belgorod region. It said that a number of shelling attacks on Ukrainian territory were “directly related” to Russian military transport aircraft flying to Belgorod airfield.