A Russian plane crashed in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula on Saturday, killing all 224 on board, an Egyptian official said. More than 100 bodies have been recovered and the Egyptian search and rescue operation is ongoing. Black box has also been reportedly recovered by rescue team members, according to The Hindu.
Islamic State (IS) group affiliate in Egypt, Wilayat Sinai, quickly claimed responsibility for downing Airbus A-321, but the Russian and Egyptian authorities dismissed the claims.
"The fighters of the Islamic State were able to down a Russian plane over Sinai province that was carrying over 220 Russian crusaders. They were all killed, thanks be to God," the terror group said in a statement circulated on social media, according to The Hindu.
The militants also released an unconfirmed video.
"The ISIS claim cannot be considered accurate. Authorities in Egypt have no such information that would confirm such insinuations," the Russian Transport Minister Maksim Sokolov said, according to NDTV.
Egyptian prime minister Sharif Ismail also refuted ISIS's claims saying that the militants cannot down a plane at the 30,000 feet.
"Experts have affirmed that technically planes at this altitude cannot be shot down, and the black box will be the one that will reveal the reasons for the crash," he said, according to ABC.
The ill-fated Kogalymavia Flight 9268 had taken off from the Egyptian resort town Sharm el-Sheikh for Saint Petersburg, Russia, as HNGN reported previously. It lost contact with air traffic control and crashed in a remote mountainous region about half-an-hour later, according to Tass news agency. Russia declared a day of mourning across the country on Nov.1.
