It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the crash in the Belgorod region, but the governor says all passengers aboard the military transport plane were killed
Or, alternatively, have that excuse prepared for use the next time Ukraine shot down a suitable transport craft, regardless of what it was actually carrying.
Video of the crash posted on social media showed a plane falling from the sky in a snowy, rural area, and a massive ball of fire erupting where it apparently hit the ground.
Firefighters, ambulances and police rushed to the site in the Korochansky district of Belgorod, state news agency Tass reported, citing a local emergency services official.
The barrage, employing more than 40 ballistic, cruise, anti-aircraft and guided missiles hit 130 residential buildings in three Ukrainian cities, “all ordinary houses,” Zelensky said on X, formerly Twitter.
Russia’s onslaught, which included targets in the capital Kyiv and second-largest city Kharkiv, was the heaviest in weeks and lent weight to Zelensky’s appeals for Western allies to provide more military aid.
“This year, the main priority is to strengthen air defence to protect our cities and towns, as well as defend front-line positions,” Zelensky posted late Tuesday.
The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said Moscow is likely trying to acquire more ballistic missiles from foreign countries, including Iran and North Korea, because they may be more effective in some circumstances.
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