Sudan plane crash kills 32

The countrys Guidance and Endowments religious affairs Minister Ghazi al-Sadeq was killed in the crash,along with Mahjoub Abdel Raheem Toutou,the states minister for youth and sports,and Eissa Daifallah,the states minister for tourism,antiquities and wildlife,it said.

Several people associated with the countrys military,state security and state media also died in the crash,the agency added.

The report did not say whether the plane involved belonged to state-owned Sudan Airways or another carrier.

Speaking on official Radio Omdurman,Culture and Information Minister Ahmed Bilal Osman said the plane crashed into a hill because of bad weather,killing the entire delegation.

A Sudanese official said the aircraft slammed into a mountain just before it was to land in Talodi and blamed zero visibility due to the seasonal heavy rains in the region. The official spoke on condition of anonymity. Abdel Hafiz Abdel Rahim,a civil aviation spokesman,had earlier told Reuters that 31 people had been killed including the crew,but had no details of their identities.

There have been several crashes in recent years involving Sudan Airways,whose fleet has been degraded by years of US sanctions. A Sudan Airways cargo plane crashed while taking off in the UAE in 2009 and another cargo plane crashed shortly after takeoff from Khartoum in 2008.