Dozens of people have died in a passenger plane crash in Kazakhstan, local officials said. So far, 25 people have been rescued alive.

The British media outlet BBC reported this information on Wednesday (December 25).

A passenger plane of Azerbaijan Airlines crashed near the city of Aktau, Kazakhstan, with 67 passengers and 5 crew members on board, the BBC reported, citing local officials in Kazakhstan. Dozens of people have died. The number may rise.

Meanwhile, the country's Ministry of Emergency Services said in a statement that 25 people have been rescued alive so far. Of these, 22 have been identified. Rescue operations are still ongoing.

The plane was carrying passengers from Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. However, there were more Azerbaijani citizens.

Citing Russian news agencies, Reuters reported that the plane belonged to Azerbaijan Airlines. It was flying from Baku to Grozny in Chechnya, Russia. However, fog forced the plane to change direction in Grozny.

Kazakh authorities have launched an investigation into possible causes of the crash, including technical problems, according to the Russian news agency Interfax.

Azerbaijan Airlines said that flight J2-8243, an Embraer 190, had taken off from the Azerbaijani capital Baku for the city of Grozny in Chechnya, Russia. But the plane was forced to make an emergency landing about 3 kilometers from Aktau in Kazakhstan.

Embraer told the BBC that it was "ready to assist relevant authorities with rescue operations."

However, the BBC has not yet received a comment from Azerbaijan Airlines, which said it was continuing to contact them.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who was visiting Russia shortly after the plane crash, returned home. He was scheduled to attend a summit in Russia on Wednesday.

Pakistan has launched a massive airstrike in Afghanistan. At least 15 people have been killed. It is claimed that women and children are among the dead.

On Wednesday (December 25), Indian news agency ANI and Afghan media outlet Khaama Press reported this information in separate reports.

According to the report, at least 15 people, including women and children, were killed in a series of airstrikes by the Pakistani military in the Barmal district of Paktika province in Afghanistan. It is feared that the death toll may rise further.

A Khama Press report says that Pakistan launched these airstrikes on seven villages including Laman in the Barmal district of Paktika province on Tuesday night. Five members of a family were killed in the attack.

The airstrikes have caused serious casualties and widespread destruction to civilians, which have further increased the ongoing tension in the region.

Meanwhile, after the airstrikes in Afghanistan, the Taliban's Defense Ministry has condemned the attack and vowed to take revenge.

Pakistani officials have yet to officially confirm the airstrike.

The Pakistani Taliban, or Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), has stepped up attacks on Pakistani security forces in recent months, and Pakistan has long accused the Afghan Taliban of harboring the militants. 

India’s Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that Bangladesh has sent a diplomatic note seeking the return of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Responding to questions from reporters at the weekly briefing on Monday (December 23), he said, “We have received a diplomatic note from Bangladesh seeking the return of Sheikh Hasina. However, he refused to comment on the matter.

Earlier, Bangladesh had written to the country’s Home Ministry to bring ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina back from India, Foreign Affairs Adviser Md. Towhid Hossain had said.

Towhid Hossain said, “We have clearly informed India. We have informed India that we want Sheikh Hasina back for the sake of justice.”

In response to a question from reporters about what the process of seeking her return could be, he said, “Through a note verbale (diplomatic letter) to the Indian government.”

Earlier, at a function held in Peelkhana on Monday, Home Affairs Adviser Lt. Gen. (Rtd) Md. Jahangir Alam Chowdhury said that a letter has been sent to the Foreign Ministry to take necessary measures to bring ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina back to the country.

He said that a letter has been sent to our Foreign Ministry regarding her return. The matter is under process. In response to a question, the Home Affairs Adviser said that there is an extradition treaty with India. The Government of India will be asked to return Sheikh Hasina according to that agreement.

Awami League President Sheikh Hasina has been in India since leaving the post of Prime Minister on August 5 and fleeing there. Although some of her party's senior leaders have been arrested, most are still in hiding.

The Awami League government formed the International Crimes Tribunal in 2010 to try crimes against humanity in 1971. Now, the interim government has taken the initiative to try the Awami League government's repression of the student and public movement as 'genocide'.

During the student and public protests from July 5 to August 5, many allegations of 'genocide and crimes against humanity' were submitted to the tribunal's investigation agency and prosecution office across the country.

Former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her family have been accused of embezzling nearly 4 billion from the Rooppur nuclear power plant in Pabna. Tulip Siddique, Sheikh Hasina's niece and a minister from the UK's ruling Labour Party, has been named in the investigation into the allegations. She has been questioned by the Justice and Ethics Team of the UK Cabinet Office in this incident.

On Sunday (December 22), the media outlet The Sunday Times reported that Tulip was questioned on Thursday. She presented her position there though Tulip herself did not comment on the interrogation. However, a spokesperson for the Cabinet Office said that she denied the claim of being involved in the embezzlement.

Tulip is a member of the British Labour cabinet. She serves as the Economic Secretary to the Treasury and City Minister. Her job is to tackle corruption within the UK's financial markets.

It has been alleged that Tulip mediated the Rooppur power plant talks with Russia in 2013. Although she was not in any government position in Britain at the time, she was not in any government position.

In addition to Tulip Siddique, Sheikh Hasina's son Sajeeb Wazed Joy and Sister Sheikh Rehana have also been accused of embezzlement.

Downing Street, the British Prime Minister's Office, has said that Prime Minister Keir Starmer has confidence in Tulip and will continue to oversee anti-corruption measures. She will continue to serve as a minister.

The British Prime Minister's spokesman said that Starmer has also denied any involvement in the allegations of Tulip Siddique's involvement in embezzlement.

Another media outlet, the Daily Mail, reported that Tulip will be questioned next month. In addition, the Anti-Corruption Commission will send a letter to the UK through the British High Commission in Dhaka. Through this, she will fall under the foreign crime investigation.