12:07, 17 November 2015

Alexander Bortnikov reports on explosion of IED on board of Airbus A321

Employees of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations work at the site of the A321 plane crash. Photo: http://www.mchs.gov.ru/dop/info/smi/news/item/5236135/

An improvised explosive device (IED) has detonated on board of the Russian Airbus A321, which crashed over the Sinai Peninsula. This was reported by FSB Director Alexander Bortnikov.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on October 31, the Airbus A321 of the "Kogalymavia" airlines, which was carrying out flight from Sharm el-Sheikh to Saint Petersburg, crashed in Egypt. 224 people on board were killed.

"According to our experts, an improvised device (IED) with power of up to 1 kilogram of TNT equivalent detonated on board of the plane in the course of the flight, resulting in the destruction of the plane in the air," the RIA "Novosti" quotes the FSB Director as stating.

Militants of the "Islamic State" (IS) (the organization is recognized as a terrorist, and its activities are prohibited in the territory of the Russian Federation by the court decision) claimed responsibility for the plane crash. On November 2, the claim was disseminated by supporters of the Egyptian extremist grouping in social network Twitter. On November 3, a top-ranking official from the Pentagon reported that a US infrared satellite recorded a thermal flash over the Sinai Peninsula several seconds prior to the crash of the Airbus A321.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.