President Jiang Zemin on May 27 expressed condolence over the losses of lives in the crash of the China Airlines Flight CI-611 off the island county of Penghu, and asked relevant departments to make their all-out efforts to help the rescue work and properly deal with the aftermath of the accident.

Jiang said that he is highly concerned with the tragedy. Compatriots across the Taiwan straits are bound together by ties of brotherly love. "I express my condolence over the compatriots from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Chinese Mainland, who were killed in the tragedy and show my sincere sympathy to their relatives".

With 206 passengers and 19 crew members on board, the passenger jet belonging to the Taiwan-based China Airlines crashed into the sea off the Penghu Islands en route from Taipei to Hong Kong Saturday afternoon.