At least 38 people were feared dead when a passenger jet crashed in Kazakhstan after it was forced to divert from its intended destination in southern Russia—an area where Moscow’s air defenses have battled Ukrainian drones in recent weeks.

More than 30 passengers are dead after an Azerbaijan Airlines flight crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, reports say. The Embraer 190 passenger jet flying from Azerbaijan to Russia had 62 passengers and five crew on board,

The plane, which had 62 passengers and five crew members on board, crashed after being forced to make an emergency landing

BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 25. President Ilham Aliyev, en route to the Russian Federation to attend the informal summit of the heads of state of CIS member countries in St. Petersburg today, was informed, while in the Russian airspace, about a plane crash that occurred in Aktau, Trend reports.

An Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash on Christmas Day has prompted speculation the plane was shot down by Russia after it took a detour of hundreds of miles in the wrong direction and crash-landed with holes in the fuselage.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said at a news conference that it was too soon to speculate on the reasons behind the crash, pointing to bad weather as the reason the plane diverted from its original course. "This is a great tragedy that has become a tremendous sorrow for the Azerbaijani people," he said.

The Russian Emergencies Ministry has dispatched a plane equipped with medical personnel and specialized equipment to the crash site near Aktau, Kazakhstan, following the tragic incident involving an Azerbaijani airline AZAL passenger plane,

Kazakhstan officials say 38 people have died after an Azerbaijani airliner crashed Wednesday near the Kazakhstan city of Aktau. Deputy Prime Minister Kanat Bozumbaev disclosed the death toll while meeting with Azerbaijani officials,