ET409 crash: Aridi says progress has been made

Lebanon’s Transportation and Public Works Minister Ghazi Aridi revealed Wednesday that some progress has been made in finding the plane’s body and expected positive results by early morning Thursday.

“The search will continue overnight, and we hope to have located the remains of the aircraft by Thursday morning,” Aridi told AFP.

“But the sea bottom is not flat — there are trenches,” he added. “If the wreckage is not located in one of the trenches, we’re going to be needing equipment different from what we are using now.”

“The more the weather improves the better for the search,” Aridi said, noting sunny skies on Wednesday and a calm sea.

Questions have been raised over whether the crash was caused by storms or missiles. The black black boxes will provide the answers according to Aridi.

ET409 crash: Hezbollah denies its delegation missed the flight

Hezbollah denied on Wednesday a report in Al-Liwaa newspaper that a high-profile party delegation missed boarding the crashed Ethiopian airliner.

The party added that the daily based its false information on rumors about Hezbollah MP Nawwar al-Sahili’s travel plans. According to Hezbollah, the unfounded report harms the families of the victims as well as the party.

Al-Liwaa has reportedly based its hypothesis on Hezbollah’s unusual concern about the catastrophe and the fact that a Hezbollah delegation, including Hashem Safieddine and MP Nawar al-Sahili, was supposed to be on the plane.

Al-Liwaa also pointed to Hezbollah’s noteworthy presence at the funeral of one of the plane victims identified as Hassan Tajeddine in the southern town of Hinawaya.

Speculation about what happened to ET409 flight has escalated . Al-Liwaa said the crash is likely a “deliberate” attack, while al Asharq al-Awsat newspaper did not rule out “sabotage” . OTV television station which which is owned by MP Michel Aoun , a close ally of Hezbollah cited official circles as saying that the Ethiopian plane was likely hit by a rocket.

Lebanese Minister of Transportation Ghazi Aridi cautioned against blaming anyone at this stage of the investigation and said the black boxes once found will provide the answers

ET409 crash mystery: Storms or sabotage?

Stormy weather or sabotage are being cited in the aviation world as possible factors in the crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight 409 off Beirut.

ET409 crash: Aridi says the boxes will provide the answers

Lebanon’s Transport and Public Works Minister Ghazi Aridi said today no one knows exactly what happened to the plane, and the flight recorders ( black boxes) will provide the answers. He cautioned against blaming ET409 plane crash on the pilot calling this ” pure speculation at this stage in the investigation”
Aridi said the pilot had 20 years of experience and was familiar with the Boeing 737-800.
Aridi said as the weather improves the recovery efforts will also improve

Lebanon PM arrived in Cairo on an official visit

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Saad Hariri has arrived in Cairo for a two-day official state visit, in which he is expected to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his Egyptian counterpart, Ahmad Nathif, to discuss bilateral relations and regional developments.
Hariri was accompanied by a delegation that includes Ministers Ali Shami, Mohammad Safadi, Tarek Mitri and Michel Pharaon.
Nathif met Hariri at the airport in Cairo
Earlier today Egyptian FM Ahmed Abul Gheit stressed his country’s cooperation with PM Hariri and warned Israel of any assault on Lebanon.

Ethiopia to join ET409 probe says its FM

Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoun Misfin said following his meeting with Prime Minister Saad Hariri, that his country’s investigative team will join the Lebanese team to find out the causes of Ethiopian Airline’s ET409 crash.
He added that Boeing , the manufacturer of the 737 aircraft will also assist in the probe.
Finding the airplane’s black boxes is the key to uncovering the causes of the tragic accident, he said
Misfin called for opening a new chapter in the Ethiopian-Lebanese relationship, adding that the Ethiopian expatriates in Lebanon form humanitarian bridges between the two countries.

Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoun Misfin (L) with Prime Minister Saad Hariri

Khalifa:5 Lebanese bodies to be handed over to their families today

Lebanon’s Health Minister Mohammed Khalife said five Lebanese bodies have been identified and will be handed over to their families at 4pm Wednesday . He also said that there are five Ethiopians among the 14 bodies at the state hospital.
Khalifa added that the ministry has received 20 human body parts that will be sent for DNA tests for identification.
Update : The bodies of 4 of the plane crash victims were identified as : Julia al-Hajj, Anis Safa, Haidar Marji, Tony al-Zakhem

ET409: Sabotage or missile attack cannot be ruled out

It is always upsetting when an event such as a plane crash takes place. So, we have to ask: What may have happened to Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409,

Ethiopian Airlines accepts full reposnsibility for ET409 crash

According to An Nahar newspaper the Ethiopian Airlines has notified the Lebanese authorities that it accepts complete responsibility for the crash of ET409 . The Ethiopian FM is expected today in Lebanon to meet with his Lebanese counterpart and and other key officials

ET409:Nasrallah says we can’t always wait for outside help

Hezbollah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday praised the aid presented to Lebanon from UNIFIL and ’some countries’ as well as the ongoing efforts of the Lebanese State authorities .
Nasrallah called for identifying the state’s weaknesses. “It is not normal to have to wait for others’ assistance; we have capabilities that enable us to have national readiness to ensure the fastest interference to face such disasters,” Nasrallah said in a televised message commenting on the Ethiopian jet disaster and extending condolences to the victims’ families.
Nasrallah stressed the importance of to recovering the bodies of the victims because ” it would ease the grief, pain, and tragedy of the families.”