President Nikos Christodoulides on Thursday offered his “heartfelt condolences” to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi following the crash of an airliner in India’s northwestern city of Ahmedabad.
“I express my heartfelt condolences to you and the people of India following the devastating loss of Air India flight AI171. The people of Cyprus mourn with you. In this time of sorrow, we stand by our Indian friends with solidarity and compassion,” he said in a post on social media.
The plane crashed into a hostel for medical students minutes after take-off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel airport. It had been bound for London’s Gatwick airport.
Local rescue personnel told news agency Reuters that at least 30 bodies had been recovered from the building at the site of the crash, and that more people were trapped inside.
Meanwhile, the BBC reported that between 50 and 60 medicine students were taken to hospital in the aftermath of the crash.
A total of 242 people were on board the flight: 181 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, seven Portuguese nationals, and one Canadian national.
According to Indian authorities, all those on board perished in the crash.
Boeing, the aeroplane’s manufacturer, said it had been in contact with Air India regarding the incident and that it would be “ready to support them”.
“Our thoughts are with the passengers, crew, first responders, and all affected,” it added.
India’s foreign ministry’s spokesman Randhir Jaiswal described the crash as a “very tragic accident”.
“The rescue operations are on. We need to wait a little more time for exact details to be put out,” he told a press briefing, adding that “we have lost a lot of people”, and that “we extend our deepest condolences to all those who have lost loved ones”.
The crash has come just three days before Modi was due to visit Cyprus.
Click here to change your cookie preferences