Ethiopian Forces Linked To Somalian Plane Crash, Five Bodies Recovered
Ethiopian forces have been linked to the crash of a light Kenyan-registered aircraft which crashed in Somalia on Monday.
HumAngle had reported that six people were killed in the crash in Bardale town in Bay region of Somalia.
Somalia’s Secretary General Abdalle Ahmed Mumin wrote on twitter, “According to local security officials a rocket-propelled grenade brought down a light Kenyan-registered aircraft with six crew while landing in Bardaale town in Bay region #Somalia.
“Two Kenyan pilots and four Somali nationals are dead. #Ethiopian forces hit the plane mistakenly,” he added.
HumAngle gathered that the pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer and a trainee pilot, as well as two people working for the airline were on-board, according to transport Minister Mohamed Salad.
Salad revealed that five bodies have been recovered so far, adding that he was sending a unit to investigate and would welcome international assistance.
Meanwhile, the Kenyan authorities are looking into the deadly crash.
They confirmed that the plane belonged to “African Express Airways and was ferrying supplies for use in the fight against the coronavirus.”
The Kenyan Civil Aviation Authority, on Tuesday, said the Kenyan-registered twin-engine plane with African Express crashed Monday afternoon on approach to Bardale “under circumstances we are yet to confirm.”
A projectile fired from the ground hit the plane as it approached the airstrip in Bay region, Ahmed isaq, a local official with the Southwestern State regional administration said.
The airstrip is a base for the Ethiopian military under the multinational African Union mission, which is combating the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab extremist group.
The group controls parts of rural southern and central Somalia.
The plane had left Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, and stopped in Baidoa before going on toward Bardale, the Kenyan statement said.
Kenyan authorities said they were in contact with the Somali Civil Aviation Authority.
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