Ethiopia declares January 25, “National Day of Mourning.”

Addis Ababa, January 25 (WIC) – Prime Minister Meles Zenawi expressed his regret over the unfortunate accident of ET-409 which took place shortly after departure from Beirut International Airport today.

The government of Ethiopia has declared January 25, “National Day of Mourning.”

Meanwhile, the United States government on Monday said USA is ready to assist in the investigations into the crash of an Ethiopian passenger airliner that occurred several minutes after take off in Beirut, Lebanon according to APA.


“On behalf of the American people, the Embassy of the United States of America expresses our deepest condolences to the Ethiopian people on the tragic crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight 409 this morning,” said the USA embassy in Ethiopia.


“Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of those who were in this terrible accident,” added the embassy.


The embassy said that together with the US government they stand prepared to assist Ethiopian Airlines and Lebanese officials in investigation into the tragedy.

“Ethiopian Airlines is a demonstrated leader in safe and reliable civil aviation in Africa and internationally,” added the embassy.
Last Updated ( Monday, 25 January 2010 )