Moscow: Poland is in a state of mourning. The coffins containing bodies of 96 people killed in the Polish presidential plane crash are being taken to Moscow for identification. The President Lech Kak-zyn-ski, his wife and some of the country's highest military and civilian leaders were killed in the plane crash in western Russia.
In Warsaw, Prime Minister Donald Tusk called an extraordinary meeting of his Cabinet. The national flag was lowered to half-staff at the presidential palace. But the plane carrying the Polish President and his delegation was two decades old.
According to Kommersant FM radio, a formal farewell ceremony would be held at the Severny military airfield in Smolensk before bodies of the Polish President and his wife are flown to Warsaw, a day after the crash of the ill-fated Soviet-era Tu-154 presidential plane in dense fog.
President Kaczynski's twin brother Jaroslaw, who flew to Smolensk last night, had identified their bodies. Jaroslaw, a former Premier, is the opposition leader of Poland. Meanwhile, rest of the bodies have been brought to Moscow on board two helicopters of the Emergency Situations Ministry's for identification by their relatives.
In Warsaw and other Polish cities, tens of thousands of people poured onto the streets to express their grief over the disaster that also killed their last President-in-exile Ryszard Kaczorowski, Deputy Foreign Minister Andrzej Kremer, Army Chief of Staff Gen Franciszek Gagor and National Bank President Slawomir Skrzypek.
They lit candles and placed flowers at the Presidential palace in the capital city. Ending the confusion of over the casualty figure, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who is heading the probe into the incident, told a Polish TV channel last night that in all 96 people were killed in yesterday's crash.
A previous list on the website of the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry had mentioned 97 dead, but a new one was issued with one person less. "Many bodies would require DNA tests for identification," Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu told Channel 1 TV.
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Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said that 12 bodies have been identified by their uniforms. "The government of Moscow city has reserved 400 hotel rooms for the relatives, who would be coming from Poland," Luzhkov told TV Tsentr.
He said arrangements have been made at the Moscow airports and railway stations to receive the relatives, who would be brought to hotels. "The Moscow government will bear all their expenses including meals and arrange for them free transport and medical services," Mayor Luzhkov said.
Since Saturday, hundreds of Russians are visiting the Polish diplomatic missions in Moscow and St Petersburg with flowers and lighting candles in memory of the Polish head of state.
Russia has declared a state mourning tomorrow. Kaczynski was on his way to Russia along with a Presidential delegation to attend the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre in which hundreds of Polish officers were killed by Joseph Stalin's secret police.
"I and all the citizens of Russia are shocked by the horrible tragedy - death of President of the Republic of Poland Lech Kaczynski, his spouse, all the polish citizens who were on board the crashed aircraft," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said in his televised message to the people of Poland Saturday night.
He promised that all circumstances of the tragedy would be probed in the "most thorough manner" in closest interaction with the Polish side. "I have given extensive instructions to the law enforcement agencies."
Prime Minister Putin, who had an emergency meeting with President Medvedev at his country retreat Gorki near Moscow, said at a Russian Cabinet meeting that "nothing like this has ever happened before."
Medvedev and Putin also visited the Russian President's private chapel to pray for the Polish plane crash victims. Russian TV channels showed the two leaders lighting candles in the chapel.
According to the Kremlin, Medvedev called up Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and assured Moscow's full cooperation with Warsaw in the probe. Putin also spoke to his Polish counterpart to express his condolences.
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