Russian Air Force aircraft flew Sudanese president wanted for war crimes to Syria for state visit
On Sunday December 16 2018 a Russian Air Force Tupolev 154 flew Sudanese president Omar Hassan al-Bashir to Damascus, Syria for a meeting with president Bashar al-Assad. Thus becoming the first Arab leader to break the diplomatic blockade on Damascus since 2011.
Omar Hassan al-Bashir is suspected by the International Criminal Court of five counts of crimes against humanity, two counts of war, and three counts of genocide allegedly committed in Darfur, Sudan.
Photos taken at the arrival of al-Bashir in Damascus show the colours of a Russian Air Force Tupolev 154 (left phoyo). The white-blue-red cheatline on the fuselage is used by Russian state aircraft.
Also Flightradar 24 provides proof that a Russian Air Force aircraft was used to fly the president wanted by ICC to Syria. The table below shows the flights Tupolev 154 registered RA-85155 made on December 16 to and from Sudan.
It arrived from Moscow on December 15 at the Latakia airbase in Syria. It used the RRR flightnumber used by the Russian Air Force. At December 16 the same aircraft continued to Khartoum using CHD callsign. The CHD callsign is used when the flightplan was submitted using diplomatic clearance. This likely prevents the aircraft from being intercepted and force to landed somewhere enroute. For example because a wanted war criminal is on board.
The image below shows part of the route the aircraft took on its way to Sudan as shown by Flightradar 24.
From Khartoum the aircraft went back to Damascus with al-Bashir onboard arriving on Sunday December 16 as CHD9011. The aircraft left Damascus again the same day back to Khartoum with president al-Bashir onboard as CHD9012. At December 17 the aircraft returned from Sudan back to Latakia using callsign CHD9012.
Callsign CHD was also used when a Russian Air Force Tupolev 154 landed at Amsterdam Schiphol airport in April 2018 bringing Syrian “eyewitness” of the alleged chemical attack in Douma to a pressconference in The Hague. This flight was using diplomatic clearance for its flightplan.
From these screenshots taken from this video it is clear al-Bashir was indeed onboard this Tupolev 154. At 2:15 into the video we see al-Bashir boarding the aircraft. Next to the door letters ‘4 M’ can be seen. Indicating the type of aircraft a Tupolev 154M.
A few minutes before boarding we see al-Bashir say goodbye to president Assad. The location of one of the engines makes clear al-Bashir is in front of a Tupolev 154.
