Egypt offers deep condolences over Ukrainian plane crash

CAIRO – 9 January 2020: Egyptian Foreign Ministry expressed sincere condolences and sympathy for the victims of the Ukrainian plane, which crashed Wednesday shortly after taking off from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport.

All 176 people on board were killed in the fatal crash, while the cause has been so far unannounced.

The ministry in a statement affirmed Egypt’s support to the government and people of Ukraine in such circumstances.

Iranian officials claim the plane was brought down by a mechanical failure. Ukrainian officials initially agreed with the Iranian suggestion but then backed away from that until investigation is fully conducted.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced sending a group of Ukrainian experts to Iran to assist investigation.

Some aviation experts, according to Associated Press, think that the plane probably crashed after it was hit by a missile, as it was brought down just hours after Iran fired over a dozen ballistic missiles at US forces in Iraq in retaliation for the death of Qassem Soleimani, a significant Iranian commander, in a drone attack launched by the US.

"Undoubtedly, the priority for Ukraine is to identify the causes of the plane crash. We will surely find out the truth. For this purpose, a thorough and independent investigation will be conducted in accordance with international law," Zelenskiy was quoted by Reuters as saying.