Canada has acknowledged finding “no evidence” that the Iranian military’s shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger plane was “deliberate” after an eight-month investigation.
CBC News on Wednesday cited an unclassified report on the circumstances and causes of the plane’s destruction, which said, “The forensic team found no evidence that the shooting down of Flight PS752 was premeditated.”
A month ago, a Canadian court had ruled that the incident was premeditated, claiming it was an “act of terrorism.”
The new report is based on all the evidence and intelligence available to the Canadian government, according to CBS News.
However, the Canadian government accused Iranian civilian and military authorities of causing “a dangerous situation” that led to the downing of the plane.
Iran has repeatedly denounced the so-called politicization of the case by certain countries, including Canada and Ukraine.
The Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) Boeing 737-800 was mistakenly shot down by Iranian air defenses on Jan. 8, 2020, as it flew from Tehran toward Kiev. All 176 people on board were killed in the accident. Most of the passengers on the plane were Iranians who were returning to Canada after the winter vacations in Iran.
The incident occurred when Iran’s air defenses were on high alert following the country’s missile attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq in retaliation for Washington’s assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
In a July 12, 2020, release, the Civil Aviation Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran (CAO.IRI) said that a “human error” by the operator of an air defense unit’s radar system caused the accidental downing of the Ukrainian passenger plane. Iran promised to punish the perpetrators and compensate the relatives of the victims in this case with full use of the judiciary.
Tehran promised that all those guilty of the incident would be brought to justice. 200 million has also been allocated to compensate survivors.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry has rejected as baseless a recent ruling by a Canadian court over the accidental downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane near Tehran in January 2020.
“Everyone knows that the Canadian court has no jurisdiction in principle over this plane crash,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saied Khatibzadeh told reporters in Tehran on Friday.
The Court of Justice of the Canadian province of Ontario ruled on Thursday that Iran is obliged to pay damages to the families of the victims of the Ukrainian plane under Canadian law dating back to 2012. Canada had dozens of citizens and permanent residents on board.
Khatibzadeh rejected the Canadian court’s verdict and said, “The mentioned verdict lacks any legal basis.”
In view of the publication of the verdict on the Internet, the spokesman invited all those interested in such issues to examine it and become aware of the issue.
“It is predictable that Canada will not comply with the basic legal principles,” Khatibzadeh added.
“The domestic law cited by the court also violates the principles of law and indeed Canada’s international obligations,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman stressed.
He described Canada’s moves in the case, including the recent court ruling, as “totally politically motivated,” saying the Canadian judge’s behavior in following political orders and clichés is a disgrace for a country that claims the rule of law.
Khatibzadeh further said “unacceptable” actions by the Canadian government and its politicized measures would only disrupt international aviation law, which would be harmful to all countries, including Canada.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman reiterated his condolences to the families of the victims and said, “The Canadian government’s political gestures have no interpretation other than trading on the grief of the bereaved families and survivors of the incident and playing on their feelings for the short-term political purposes.”
Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752, with 176 passengers and nine crew members on board, crashed Jan. 8 shortly after takeoff outside Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport.
Iranian authorities admitted that human error caused the plane to crash at a time when Iran’s air defenses were on high alert due to increased hostile U.S. air activity following the assassination of Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the Revolutionary Guards.
Tehran has promised that all those guilty of the incident will be brought to justice and has allocated 200 million euros to compensate survivors.
