Riyaz Patel
Iran has admitted that it accidentally shot down a passenger plane on Wednesday, saying human error was behind the deaths of all 176 people on board.
Ukrainian International Airlines flight PS752 took off from Imam Khomeini International Airport, bound for Kiev, hours after Iran had launched a salvo of rockets at two Iraqi bases hosting US military troops – a response to last week’s killing of top general Qassem Soleimani.
According to an early assessment, the Ukrainian plane was erroneously identified as an incoming cruise missile, which resulted in the tragedy.
Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, said those responsible will be punished. “My thoughts and prayers go to all the mourning families,” the president said in a tweet, offering his “sincerest condolences” over the tragedy.
Though western intelligence agencies concluded this week that it was highly likely an Iranian air defence missile was responsible for the crash, Tehran initially denied involvement, calling the claims “psychological warfare.”
Commander of Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Amir Ali Hajizadeh, said he “wished he was dead” upon learning of the Ukrainian jet downing and accepted full responsibility for the incident.
The commander explained that the incident occurred when the country was bracing for the potential US strikes and the “likelihood of conflict” between the two nations has been “unprecedented” since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
In recent days, video footage emerged online suggesting the plane had been struck by a missile soon after it took to the air, before attempting to turn back to the airport.
It had been suggested that Iran mistakenly targeted the plane while on high alert anticipating a US response to Tehran’s attack on American troops in Iraq.
This scenario was apparently confirmed by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif, who on Saturday tweeted, “Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster,” calling it “a sad day.”
An Iranian military statement said the plane had flown close to a sensitive military site belonging to the elite Revolutionary Guard, expressing condolences to the victims.
It said responsible parties would be referred to a judicial department within the military and held accountable.
Of the 176 people on board, many were Iranian with dual nationality en route to Canada, with Kiev an intended transit point.
