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HomeWorldUkraine, Iran deny reports of hijacking of evacuation plane from Afghanistan

Ukraine, Iran deny reports of hijacking of evacuation plane from Afghanistan

Ukraine's deputy foreign minister Yevgeny Yenin Sunday claimed that a Ukrainian plane was hijacked in Afghanistan by unidentified people who flew it into Iran.

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Kiev/Tehran: A Ukrainian plane that arrived in Afghanistan to evacuate Ukrainians was hijacked by unidentified people who flew it into Iran, Russia’s TASS news agency quoted Ukraine’s deputy Foreign Minister Yevgeny Yenin as saying on Tuesday.

“Last Sunday, our plane was hijacked by other people. On Tuesday, the plane was practically stolen from us, it flew into Iran with an unidentified group of passengers onboard instead of airlifting Ukrainians. Our next three evacuation attempts were also not successful because our people could not get into the airport,” he said, reported TASS.

The minister said that hijackers were armed but further he did not say anything about the plane or Ukraine is in the process to get it back or how the Ukrainian citizens got back from Kabul, onboard of this “practically stolen” plane or another one sent by Kiev, TASS said.

A military transport plane with 83 people on board, including 31 Ukrainians, arrived from Afghanistan to Kiev on Sunday. The presidential office reported that 12 Ukrainian military personnel returned home, while foreign reporters and public figures who requested help were also evacuated. The office also added that around 100 Ukrainians are still expecting evacuating in Afghanistan, according to TASS.

Ukraine and Iran both have denied reports of hijacking of a Ukrainian evacuation plane from Afghanistan, reported The Jerusalem Post.

The Iranian Civil Aviation Authority denied the report, saying that the plane refuelled in Mashhad and then flew to Kiev.

According to the RBC Ukraine news agency, Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesman for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry denied the report as well, saying “There are no captured Ukrainian planes in Kabul or elsewhere. The information about the ‘captured plane’ that is being circulated by some media outlets is not true.”

Nikolenko clarified that Yenin was only generally explaining the unprecedented level of difficulties that diplomats had to face in evacuating Ukrainians. It is unclear why Yenin said that plane was hijacked by armed persons and “actually stolen” if this was not the case, The Jerusalem Post added.


Also read: How India is evacuating people from Kabul amid complications


 

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