Georgia saddened by plane crash in French Alps
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Thursday, March 26
Georgia is saddened by the tragedy of the plane crash in the French Alps that claimed 150 lives.
The Prime Minister of Georgia released a special statement of condolences.
“It is with great sadness and sorrow that I learned of the tragedy in the French Alps. This plane crash claimed the lives of 150 people, including children.”
“In this time of sorrow, I offer my heartfelt sympathy and condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims,” the PM’s statement reads.
A special statement has also been released by President Giorgi Margvelashvili.
"I express my deep condolences, and my sympathy goes to the families of the victims of the crashed plane in France.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia is also offering its condolences to the governments and people of Germany, Spain and other nations, whose citizens were onboard the plane. The ministry also expressed its sympathy to the families of the crash victims.
The BBC reports that the Airbus A320 - flight 4U 9525 – bound from Barcelona to Duesseldorf crashed after an eight-minute rapid descent, officials say. There were no survivors.
Officials believe 67 of the 144 passengers were German citizens, including 16 students returning from an exchange trip.
More than 40 passengers were believed to be Spanish, and UK Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond confirmed that three Britons were onboard. The flight was also carrying citizens of Australia, Japan, Colombia, Turkey, Denmark, the Netherlands and Belgium.
The plane, a single-aisle passenger jet popular for short and medium-haul flights, did not send out a distress signal, officials said.
The White House said there is no evidence so far of a terror attack. A Lufthansa official said they were assuming for the time being that the crash had been caused by an accident.
