Libya Plane Crash Survivor in Stable Condition
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Officials say the boy underwent surgery for fractures on both legs after being pulled from the debris of the Afriqiyah Airways plane. He is the only survivor.
The Dutch Foreign Ministry has not confirmed his identity. However, a Netherlands newspaper, the Brabants Dagblad says he may be a nine-year-old from the southern city of Tilburg who was in South Africa on a safari with his parents and brothers.
More than half of the passengers, 62, were vacationers from the Netherlands who were traveling home from South Africa. Travelers from nearly 10 other countries were on the Johannesburg-to-Tripoli flight. Most had plans to travel on to Europe.
The A-330 Airbus crashed on Wednesday as it was approaching Tripoli airport. The plane was carrying 93 passengers and 11 crew.
Libyan officials are investigating the cause of the crash but they have ruled out terrorism.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.
Boy survivor of Libya air crash 'stable but confused'
Thursday, May 13, 2010
TRIPOLI (AFP) - – A Dutch boy who miraculously survived a Libyan plane crash that killed 103 people including his parents is confused but stable, a doctor said Thursday, as relatives arrived in Tripoli to comfort him.
The boy, identified only as "Ruben" by the Dutch foreign ministry but more fully named by the Dutch media as nine-year-old Ruben van Assouw, has come round after surgery to his smashed legs, the doctor treating him in a Tripoli hospital said.
"He woke up (late Wednesday night) and is in good condition," the doctor said, while stressing that the boy, the sole survivor of Wednesday's disaster, was confused and "still is not reacting well to his surroundings."
"The child underwent several rounds of surgery to his legs. He had simple fractures and double fractures," the doctor said on Libyan state television, which also showed pictures of Ruben's legs in casts.
A Dutch foreign ministry spokesman said an uncle and an aunt arrived in Tripoli Thursday on a Netherlands government plane and were taken to the hospital "to make sure that Ruben will see family faces next to his bed." Facts:Deadly plane accidents in the past five years
According to the Dutch NOS public broadcaster, the boy recognised his family and smiled when they entered his hospital room.
Ruben would be flown back home "as soon as his medical condition allows," the spokesman said.
Ministry spokesman Christoph Prommersberger told AFP that Ruben was doing "reasonably well."
"A colleague from the embassy (in Tripoli) was able to speak with him. He told her he was Ruben, nine years old, from the city of Tilburg," Prommersberger said. "He is not in a critical condition."
Dutch newspaper Babants Dagblad said the boy was likely Ruben van Assouw from Tilburg in the southern Netherlands who had been on safari in South Africa with his mother Trudy, 41, father Patrick, 40, and his brother Enzo, 11.
Also on board the Dutch government plane to Tripoli were forensic experts, consular staff and transport ministry staff, the foreign ministry said.
Libya's Transport Minister Mohammed Ali Zidan said a total of 103 people -- 92 passengers of nine nationalities and an 11-strong Libyan crew -- died when an Afriqiyah Airways Airbus A330 coming from Johannesburg disintegrated on landing at Tripoli airport.
The Dutch ministry said on Thursday that 70 Dutch nationals were among the dead, while a diplomat said family members from the Netherlands have been flown in to Libya courtesy of Afriqiyah to identify the bodies and prepare their repatriation.
The ministry added in a statement that "the family of the nine-year-old Ruben, the sole survivor of the disaster", were among those who perished.
Johannesburg private Talk Radio 702 reported on Thursday that at least 10 South Africans died in the crash.
Libya's transport minister said the rest of the dead included two Germans as well as passengers from Britain, France, Finland, the Philippines and Zimbabwe, although he could not give a breakdown of their numbers.
With the plane's black boxes recovered, investigators from manufacturers Airbus and France where the plane was built have also flown to join the inquiry led by Libya, which has ruled out terrorism as the cause of Wednesday's crash.
Witnesses spoke of the aircraft inexplicably breaking up as it came in to land in clear weather.
"It is too soon to know the causes of the accident," Sabri Shadi, the chairman of the board of Afriqiyah Airways, said about the probe into the crash.
"Several committees have been set up to investigate and we need some time before we can draw any conclusions," he said.
"A preliminary report should be published in the next few days but definitive results will not be know for several days, even weeks," the chairman added.
Shadi said that after a first meeting which grouped the team that US investigators were to join the probe on Friday. The crash scene, meanwhile, has been placed under police guard.
Libyan Plane Crash Kills 103, Child Survives
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Rescue teams search the site of the Libyan Afriqiyah Airways plane crash in Tripoli, Libya, 12 May 2010
A Libyan airliner with 104 people on board has crashed during landing at Tripoli's airport. At least 103 people have been confirmed killed, with a young Dutch boy the only known survivor. More than half the passengers are believed to have been from the Netherlands.
The Afriqiyah Airways plane was arriving from Johannesburg, South Africa, and is believed to have crashed just short of the runway.
The Libyan-owned airline says 93 passengers and 11 crewmembers were on board flight 771 as it attempted to land.
A Libyan official says a young Dutch boy who was the lone survivor did not have life threatening injuries.
Libyan media showed wreckage of the plane spread over a wide field, with rescue and emergency workers on the scene.
Officials say they have already recovered the flight's voice recorder, which may give information on the cause of the crash. Weather is not believed to be a factor. Witnesses say they did not see any fire before the plane broke apart. Authorities announced an investigation is under way, but initially ruled out a terrorist attack.
In Johannesburg, a spokeswoman for the Airports Company South Africa, Unathi Batyashe-Fillis, said the company had no confirmation on what caused the crash.
"What we do know is that the airline left last night at 2137 [1937 GMT] for Tripoli. It was scheduled to arrive in Tripoli at 6 o'clock [0400 GMT]," she said. "We don't know where the communication failure happened, but what we can confirm is that 104 passengers and crew were on board at the time."
Afriqiyah said its crewmembers were Libyan. Officials in South Africa reported most aboard the flight had planned to make a connection in Tripoli and fly on to various destinations in Europe. Crisis centers have been set up in both Johannesburg and Tripoli.
The airline maintains an Airbus fleet and had previously maintained a good safety record.
100,000 Attend State Funeral for Poland President
Sunday, April 18, 2010
About 100,000 Poles turned out for Sunday's state funeral for President Lech Kaczynski and his wife Maria in the southern city of Krakow. The ceremonies ended a week of mourning for 96 people killed in a plane crash a week ago.
A final day of memorial services for President Lech Kaczynski and his wife, an elaborate holy mass as St. Mary's Basilica in central Krakow.
The church filled with family and friends along with government officials, foreign leaders and delegations. The president and first lady were among 96 people who died when their plane crashed near the Russian town of Smolensk.
They were on their way to a memorial service honoring 22,000 Polish military officers killed by Soviet troops in 1940 in the Katyn forest in western Russia.
Katyn remains a defining moment in Polish history and has severely troubled relations between Russia and Poland. At the funeral, Speaker of the Polish Parliament and Acting President Bronislav Komorowski said he hoped the tragedy of the plane crash may help bring the two nations together.
He said there have been many signs of warmth and understanding from the Russian people and words and gestures from Russia's leaders. These are greatly appreciated, he said.
Russian President Dmitri Medvedev was among the foreign leaders attending the funeral. Before leaving Krakow, he too said he hoped the tragedy might bring about a rapprochement.
Many other leaders had planned to attend the funeral, but were forced to cancel due to hazardous flying conditions above much of Europe, caused by a cloud of volcanic ash in the high atmosphere. U.S. President Barrack Obama was among those unable to attend.
After the funeral mass, the coffins of President Kaczynski and his wife were taken through the town and up the hill to Wawel Cathedral, where they were laid to rest.
Crowds lined the streets, tossing flowers and waving Polish flags, the Cathedral's historic bell tolling a final farewell.
US Military Helicopter Crashes in Northern Iraq
Sunday, April 18, 2010
The U.S. military says one of its helicopters has crashed in northern Iraq, killing an American soldier and injuring three others.
The military says the cause of the crash late Saturday is under investigation, but is not believed to be linked to enemy fire. An Iraqi military official says the helicopter went down near the city of Tikrit.
In another development, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, Etihad Airways, plans to begin regular passenger flights to Baghdad on April 26.
The airline said Sunday it will launch five return flights a week from Abu Dhabi to Baghdad using Airbus A320 planes, subject to government and regulatory approval.
The plan would make Etihad the first Emirati airline to provide regular passenger flights to Iraq. Etihad says it hopes to add an additional route between Abu Dhabi and the city of Irbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region starting June 1.
Etihad chief executive James Hogan says the airline expects strong demand on the routes from government and business travelers.
International airlines have been returning slowly to Iraq as its security improves and economic activity picks up following years of conflict.
Kaczynski burial plan causes split
Saturday, April 17, 2010
A row has broken out over the decision to bury Polish President Lech Kaczynski in Wawel cathedral in Krakow - a place reserved for Poland's kings and heroes.
Hundreds have taken to the streets of the southern city in protest at the plan for a second consecutive night.
Thousands have joined an internet campaign against it. Mr Kaczynski died in a plane crash on Saturday along with his wife and many senior officials.
A date for a presidential election will be set after the funeral on Sunday.
Acclaimed Polish film director Andrzej Wajda dubbed the burial arrangements "misplaced" and "hastily made as emotions ran high", in an open letter published by the newspaper, Gazeta Wyborcza.
"Lech Kaczynski was an ordinary and good man, but there is no reason for him to lie in the Wawel among the kings of Poland and Marshal Jozef Pilsudski [the founder of modern-day Poland]," he said.
Officials said the site in a crypt close to Marshal Pilsudski was chosen by church leaders and the Kaczynski family, which include Mr Kaczynski's twin, Jaroslaw - the leader of Poland's opposition.
But Mr Wajda said the decision "will spark protests and could cause the deepest splits in Polish society since 1989".
Facebook protest
Hundreds of people staged a protest in front of the residence of Krakow's Archbishop, Stanislaw Dziwisz, on Tuesday evening, carrying banners reading: "Not Krakow, not Wawel", and "Are you sure he is the equal of kings?"
Late on Wednesday a second protest was held, as well as a smaller counter demonstration in favour of the plan.
A Facebook group called "No to the Kaczynskis' burial in Wawel" had attracted more than 26,000 members by Wednesday.
Many world leaders are to attend Sunday's funeral, including US President Barack Obama along with the leaders of Russia, France and Germany.
Polish officials have said that elections for a new president will be held in June.
In a parliamentary document they wrote that there were "two possible dates" - 13 or 20 June.
Poland's acting President, Bronislaw Komorowski, is expected to name the exact date after consulting political parties.
The bodies of the presidential couple have been lying in state together at the presidential palace in Warsaw.
They were among 96 people on board the Polish government jet that crashed in heavy fog while trying to land in the Smolensk region of Russia.
They had been travelling to attend a memorial service for Polish military officers and others massacred by Stalin's secret police at Katyn in 1940.
Other victims of the crash, whose bodies are believed to have been badly disfigured or burnt in the crash, are being identified by forensic scientists in Moscow.
A number of the dead have yet to be retrieved from the wreckage, officials said.
Russian investigators believe pilot error was to blame for the crash.
Air traffic controllers who handled the plane have been quoted as saying the Polish crew refused three times to heed advice to divert to another airport because of poor visibility.
