Russian and Egyptian authorities, who have widened the search for crash victims, have dismissed the claims made by terror group of bringing down Airbus A321
London: Russian and Egyptian authorities have not confirmed the involvement of Islamic States of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in the crash of Metrojet’s Airbus A-321, which killed over 224 passengers, mostly Russians.
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So far, 175 bodies of the victims have been found, but the search area was extended to 15 km, after some were located away from the main wreck.
Debris of the plane crash at Egypt's Sinai Peninsula on Sunday. PIC/AFP
Earlier, an Egyptian extremist group affiliated to ISIS claimed the responsibility to bring the plane down. However,
Russia’s transport minister Maksim Sokolov has stated that ISIS claims “can’t be considered accurate”.
The Egyptian army spokesperson Mohamed Samir is also doubtful about the claim and said that presently there is
no proof of ISIS involvement in the crash. The cause can only be determined when the Civil Aviation Authority, in coordination with Russian authorities, completes its probe, he added.
The investigation team has recovered both the black boxes of the 18-year-old plane and has begun to find the reason behind the crash. They are focusing on the possibility of a technical failure.
Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi expressed condolence to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin during their
telephonic conversation. Putin has also promised maximum participation of Russian specialists in the investigation.
On Saturday, Metrojet’s Airbus A321 travelling from Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt to Russia’s St Petersburg, carrying 224 passengers including flight crew crashed at Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, killing all aboard.
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