A Russian military transport plane carrying 74 people has crashed in the southern region of Belgorod, near the Ukrainian border, BBC reported.
According to local news agency Ria Novosti, the Ilyushin-76 military plane was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, six crew members, and three other people.
BBC reported via Ria Novosti, that the Ukrainian prisoners were "being transported to Belgorod region for exchange", although that cannot be confirmed.
Russia’s Ministry of defence said that the cause of the crash is being investigated, and a special military commission is on its way to the crash site.
The plane crash video is being circulated on social media, in which the plane can be seen going down near the village of Yablonovo, followed by an explosion, at around 11:00 local time (08:00 GMT).
Belgorod region borders Ukraine and has come under frequent attacks from Ukraine in recent months, including a December missile strike that killed 25 people.
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