Overview
- Turkey’s defense ministry confirmed the transport plane went down after departing Azerbaijan, with search and rescue coordinated with Georgian and Azerbaijani authorities.
- Officials have not disclosed how many people were on board or whether there are casualties.
- Video shared on social media and by local outlets appears to show the aircraft breaking apart mid-air, though this has not been formally verified.
- The crash was reported in Georgia’s Rustavi region near the border with Azerbaijan, about 100 miles from Russia.
- Georgia opened a criminal case and said the Interior Ministry will release information in stages while the cause remains unknown.