Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev has accused Russia of accidentally shooting down an airliner on Christmas Day in a disaster that killed 38 people, and covering up the cause.

"We can clearly say today that the plane was shot down by Russia," President Ilham Aliyev said in a televised statement

Dozens of people have died after an Azerbaijan Airlines flight traveling from the Azerbaijani capital of Baku to Grozny in Russia crashed on Christmas Day 2024, according to reports.

A survivor of Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243, hit by a Russian missile, recalls an explosion near her leg as the plane struggled to land in Grozny before crash landing in Kazakhstan

Survivors from the crash told ABC News that they heard and felt explosions outside the aircraft during the flight, after which the plane appeared to lose control.

Azerbaijan’s president Ilham Aliyev has accused Russia of shooting down a plane that crashed on Christmas Day, killing 38 people.

Azerbaijan has demanded that Russia admit its guilt over a Christmas Day plane crash that killed 38 people, the country's President Ilham Aliyev said on Sunday. The big picture: Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Aliyev for the Azerbaijan Airlines crash occurring in Russian airspace,