Sudan Plane Crash Kills All Passengers
August 20, 2012; 5:58 AM
A plane carrying at least 31 people crashed into a mountain in Taloudy town in Sudan. There are no survivors.
The plane left Khartoum at 6 a.m. local time according to news.xinhaunet.com. The plane attempted to land twice due to the weather and failed before colliding with the mountain.
"While observations are scarce across the area, that part of Sudan is usually affected daily by showers and thunderstorms during this time of year thanks to its proximity to a meteorological feature known as the ITCZ. Satellite confirms there was lightning and cloud cover across the region around the time of the crash," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Evan Duffey.
Local officials confirmed that Sudan's Minister of Guidance and Endowments Ghazi al-Sadiq and Peace and Justice Party member Makki Balayela were killed in the crash.
The passengers were part of a ministerial delegation headed to South Kordofan State to present congratulation of Eid Al-Fitr (the last day of the holy month of Ramadan) to the people and members of the Sudanese armed forces in the area.
A statement from the Sudan government ruled out the chance that the plane was shot down by a military attack.
Armed clashes between the Sudanese army and rebels of the Sudan People's Liberation Army have been witnessed in the area.