ARMENIA DENIES GUN RUNNING FOR HEZBOLLAH

RIA Novosti
Aug 3, 2009

YEREVAN, August 3 (RIA Novosti) – Armenia denied on Monday reports
that an airliner that crashed on July 15 was carrying arms for the
Lebanon-based radical Hezbollah group.

The Iranian Caspian Airlines Tu-154, en route from Tehran to Yerevan,
crashed 200 kilometers (124 miles) from the Iranian capital killing
all 168 people on board.

Some foreign media earlier said the airliner crashed following an
explosion in the hold.

"We do not have such information. There are no grounds for it. The
dissemination of such information is an unfriendly step with regard to
Armenia," said Serob Karapetyan, head of flight security at Armenia’s
Civilian Aviation Administration.

He added that according to the Interstate Aviation Committee, the
crash was caused by an engine fire.