A spokesperson of the Defense Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, Andriy Yusov, revealed that russia’s high-ranking officials were intended passengers on the Il-76 military transport aircraft that crashed in Belgorod region. Andriy Yusov confirmed that the names of these officials would be disclosed as part of an international investigation.
Andriy Yusov further explained that russian security services, specifically the FSB, had intervened just before takeoff, instructing the mentioned officials not to board the plane. This crucial information came to light post-incident, detailing the last-minute decision by the FSB redirecting the officials to alternative means of transportation.
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In the aftermath of the crash, russian rescuers arrived at the scene, but the Ministry of Emergency Situations representatives were denied access by the FSB, preventing them from following the standard protocol. Andriy Yusov underscored that video footage from the crash site did not reveal any bodies, citing intelligence data that only five bodies were brought to the Belgorod morgue, corresponding to the crew members of the crashed Il-76 aircraft from the russian Aerospace Forces.
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