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TUESDAY, DECEMBER 27, 2016 Trump supporter DR Congo Christmas slaughter leaves 35 dead succeeds Haley Page 10 Page 9 SOCHI: People lay flowers along the pier in this Black Sea city yesterday, a day after a Russian military plane crashed on its way to Syria. — AFP Parts of crashed Russian plane found Pilot error, technical fault main theories ● No evidence of foul play found SOCHI: Russian rescuers found yes- diers standing in a chain and Syria to support and wish happy terday the first parts of the Syria- motorboats participating in the holidays to those who are serving bound military plane that plunged search regularly unloading at the their military duty there,” Prime into the Black Sea, as officials dis- pier, an AFP photographer report- Minister Dmitry Medvedev said after missed terrorism as a possible cause ed. More than three thousand opening a government meeting, of the crash that killed all 92 people people are racing to find the which held a moment of silence. on board. The Tu-154 jet, whose pas- remaining bodies and debris in a Other passengers included mili- sengers included more than 60 massive operation that includes 45 tary officers, journalists and popu- members of the internationally- vessels, planes, helicopters and lar charity worker Yelizaveta Glinka, renowned Red Army Choir, was drones, along with divers and also known as Doctor Liza, who heading to Russia’s military base in remotely-operated deep-water had been flying with a cargo of Syria when it went down off the machines. Transport Minister medical supplies for a hospital in coast of the resort city of Sochi Maxim Sokolov said some of the the coastal city of Latakia. Another shortly after take-off on Sunday. bodies could have already been passenger was the head of the Investigators have yet to confirm carried off by the “strong current” defense ministry’s culture depart- the cause of the crash, but officials to Abkhazia, the separatist region ment Anton Gubankov, who said that an act of terror was not of Georgia, and some of its own worked to popularise the armed being considered as a possible rescue workers have joined the forces, including by authoring the explanation, despite the plane and search operation. song “Polite People” which hon- its black boxes still being underwa- Along with the first 10 bodies, 86 ored special forces officers who ter. A spokeswoman for the Sochi- body fragments were brought to oversaw the annexation of Crimea. based search and rescue branch of the Russian capital for DNA analysis, President Vladimir Putin ordered the emergency ministry confirmed defence ministry spokesman Igor a national day of mourning yester- that parts of the plane had been Konashenkov said. He said searchers day, with state television flashing found underwater. “The debris is at have finished looking over the on- black and white pictures of the vic- the depth of 27 metres one mile land territory around the crash site tims across the screen while enter- from shore,” spokeswoman Rimma while divers are working over an tainment programs were cancelled. Chernova told AFP. The Russian mili- area with a radius of 500 m. People brought flowers to impro- tary added that divers had retrieved vised memorials at the port in cen- “two elements of the plane’s control Choir ‘orphaned’ tral Sochi and the city’s airport, as mechanism.” The Tu-154 jet went down on well as to the Moscow headquarters Authorities have said that the Sunday morning minutes after tak- of the Red Army Choir and the office search operation would continue ing off at 5:25 am (0225 GMT) from of Fair Aid, the NGO that Glinka overnight. Russia’s federal security Sochi’s airport, where it had stopped headed, which primarily worked service said it is looking into four to refuel after flying out from the with Moscow’s homeless. suspected causes of the crash, Chkalovsky military aerodrome in “I know all of them. I cannot which do not include terrorism. “No the Moscow region. Onboard were believe it, can’t collect myself,” said signs or facts pointing to a possible 64 members of the Alexandrov Vladimir Kuznetsov, a former mem- act of terror have been received at Ensemble - the army’s official musi- ber of the Alexandrov Ensemble this time,” Russia’s Federal Security cal group, also known as the Red who came to pay his respects. “They Service said in a statement carried Army Choir - and their conductor knew us all over the world, we went by national news agencies. The Valery Khalilov. “The ensemble has everywhere,” he said of the troupe, probe is focusing on a pilot error, a been orphaned by a third,” said state holding a candle in a plastic cup. Tu- technical fault, bad fuel and a for- channel Rossiya. 154 aircraft have been involved in a eign object in the engine as the The choir was set to perform for number of accidents in the past, four main scenarios, it added. Russian troops at the Hmeimim air- including the April 2010 crash base in Syria, which has been used killing then-Polish president Lech Thousands searching to launch air strikes in support of Kaczynski and his delegation. They The military has cordoned off Moscow’s ally President Bashar Al- are no longer used by commercial part of the Sochi shore, with sol- Assad. “These people were flying to airlines in Russia. — AFP Oman appeals court revokes ban on Azamn daily: Lawyer MUSCAT: An appeals court yesterday lifted a ban But yesterday, the appeals court lifted the on Azamn newspaper which was forced to close in ban on Azamn and reduced the sentences to six August after it published an article alleging gov- months in jail for Maamari and one year for Haj, ernment corruption, the paper’s lawyer said. The lawyer Yacoub Al-Harithi said. Maamari and Haj, court also reduced prison sentences handed down who were released on bail in October, will by a lower court to editor-in-chief Ibrahim Al- appeal the latest sentencing, sources close to Maamari and his deputy Yousef Al-Haj. They were the pair said. arrested on July 28, two days after the paper pub- Ten international rights groups had urged lished an article accusing public officials of cor- Sultan Qaboos to revoke the closure order and ruption and interfering in judicial decisions. end a crackdown by the authorities on journal- The authorities shut down the paper indefinite- ists and activists. A joint statement by the 10, ly in a decision later confirmed by judicial authori- including Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and ties, and the journalists were tried and sentenced the Committee to Protect Journalists, said “the to three years in prison each. They were accused harsh sentences are a clear attempt to hinder the of “undermining the prestige of the state and mis- work of journalists and to curtail the rights of using the Internet”, according to the charge sheet. freedom of expression in Oman”. — AFP .