Kuwait: The Russian Ministry of Defense announced Wednesday: that six crew members and 23 passengers on board an Antonov An-26 military transport aircraft were killed after it lost contact over the Crimean Peninsula.

According to Qatar News Agency, the Ministry stated that contact had been lost with the military aircraft, which was on a scheduled flight over Crimea. The search and rescue team later located the crash site, confirming the fatalities of all six crew members and 23 passengers on board.

The preliminary cause of the crash has been attributed to a technical malfunction, as per the ministry's statement. Further investigations are expected to provide more insights into the tragic incident.