“One year after the crash of the Il-76 plane in the Belgorod region: what is known about the tragedy A year ago, a Russian Il-76 crashed in the Belgorod region, allegedly carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war. Russia accuses Ukraine, but refuses an international investigation and does not provide evidence.”, — write on: unn.ua
On January 24, 2024, a Russian Il-76 military transport plane crashed in the village of Yablonovo, Belgorod Region, Russia.
Immediately after the accident, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that the Il-76 military transport plane was shot down by the Ukrainian military. And as claimed, according to the Russian agency, the plane was hit by an anti-aircraft missile system, from which the Armed Forces of Ukraine allegedly fired two missiles from the territory of Lyptsi in the Kharkiv region.
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In particular, the aggressor country noted that 74 people died as a result of the disaster. Among them are 6 crew members, 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were supposedly being taken for exchange, as well as 3 Russian servicemen who accompanied them. In addition, the Russian propagandist Margarita Simonyan, as “proof”, distributed the list of Ukrainian prisoners of war who were allegedly on board the Il-76. It is true that among the specified persons in this list was a man whose data coincided with the data exchanged on January 3, 2024. Actually, this information calls into question the statements of the Russian Federation regarding the number of dead.
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For its part, later, after the event, the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine confirmed that the exchange of prisoners of war was indeed supposed to take place on January 24, 2024. Ukraine fulfilled all agreements for the preparation of the exchange of prisoners, but the Russian side had to ensure their safety.
Russia should have warned about the need to ensure airspace security before it was done earlier. However, on the day of the disaster, Ukraine did not receive information about the routes, the number of vehicles and the methods of delivering the prisoners.
“The landing of a transport plane in the 30-kilometer zone of hostilities cannot be safe and in any case must be discussed by both sides, because otherwise it endangers the entire process of exchange,” the GUR noted.
After the tragedy, Ukraine insisted on an international investigation, but Russia refused to admit relevant experts.
Subsequently, Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets stated that Ukraine did not find confirmation that a large number of Ukrainian prisoners of war were on board the Il-76 military transport aircraft.
According to Lubinets, the Russian side did not provide any evidence that would confirm their claims about the death of 65 prisoners. The head of the Main Directorate of Intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, also noted that the situation surrounding the disaster remains unclear, as Russia does not hand over the bodies of the dead.
For reference
IL-76 is a multi-purpose military transport aircraft designed for the transportation of troops, equipment and urgent cargo. Up to 167 military personnel or 126 paratroopers can be on board at the same time.
Also, the Il-76 aircraft can be equipped with cannon weapons. The internal bomb loading of the aircraft is up to 10 FAB-500 kg aerial bombs.