Russia and Egypt Do Not Accept FBI's Help Investigating Plane Crash in Sinai
The remains of a Russian airliner are seen as an Egyptian military helicopter flies over the crash site in al-Hasanah area at El Arish city, north Egypt, November 1. Rescue teams scoured the area where...The remains of a Russian airliner are seen as an Egyptian military helicopter flies over the crash site in al-Hasanah area at El Arish city, north Egypt, November 1. Rescue teams scoured the area where the Airbus A321 came down on Saturday, collecting into a pile the dead holidaymakers' belongings that were spread around the main part of the wreckage. Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters
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Polly Mosendz is a breaking news reporter for Newsweek. She was previously a staff writer for The Wire and associate editor for The Atlantic. Her reporting on the Islamic State has been recognized by a variety of organizations, including the Middle East Institute. Her writing has appeared in The New York Observer, The Commercial Observer, Cosmopolitan, Business Insider, Yahoo News and a variety of other publications. Born in Kiev, Ukraine, she is fluent in both Ukrainian and Russian. Mosendz attended the New School University where she studied media writing and American history. She lives in Greenwich Village with many books.
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Russian and Egyptian officials have not accepted an offer of assistance from the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating the crash of a Russian airliner in late October.
"The FBI has offered forensic assistance and other services to our partners in Egypt and Russia, and stands ready to assist," Supervisory Special Agent Joshua Campbell tells Newsweek. The two countries are investigating why a Russian plane carrying 224 people crashed on October 31 in the Sinai while traveling between the sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh and St. Petersburg.
All on board the airliner were killed in the crash. Preliminary investigations led both U.S. and U.K. officials last week to question whether the plane was brought down by a bomb, and a black box recovered from the plane suggests the flight came to a "violent, sudden" end.
President Barack Obama said last week that the United States is "very seriously" considering whether the plane was brought down by a bomb. It was not specified whether Obama requested that the FBI reach out to Russia and Egypt, or whether the agency acted of its own.
As a result of safety concerns, German, British, Irish, Swiss and Russian flights have been suspended from the airport.
