Putin: Il-76 with Ukrainian prisoners was shot down by the American Patriot system. Putin also called for an international investigation into the tragedy.
On January 24, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that Ukrainian troops hit a Russian Il- 76 military transport plane with captured Ukrainian Armed Forces military personnel over the Belgorod region using an anti-aircraft missile system. On board were six crew members, 65 military personnel of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the exchange and three Russian military personnel accompanying them.