A Turkish C-130 military cargo plane crashed in Georgia’s Sighnaghi municipality near the Azerbaijan border, killing all 20 Turkish military personnel on board, including the flight crew.
The plane, which took off from Azerbaijan’s Ganja city, was headed back to Turkey when it crashed. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his condolences, describing the deceased as “martyrs”.
“God willing, we will overcome this crash with minimum hardships. May God rest the soul of our martyrs, and let us be with them through our prayers,” Erdogan said.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev also offered condolences, stating, “We were deeply saddened by the tragic news of the loss of servicemen in the crash of a Turkish Air Force military cargo plane”.
The cause of the crash is still unknown, and an investigation is underway. Rescue teams are working to recover the remains of the personnel.