TEHRAN, Jan 11 (NNN-BERNAMA) — The General Staff of the Iranian armed forces admitted on Saturday that the Ukrainian Boeing 737 passenger plane had been unintentionally shot down by Iranian forces, Sputnik news agency reported, quoting the IRIB state TV and radio broadcaster.
“As a result of a human error, the plane was unintentionally shot down,” the General Staff said in a statement, as quoted by the IRIB state TV and radio broadcaster.
“Our profound regrets, apologies and condolences to our people, to the families of all victims, and to other affected nations,” said Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif as reported by Anadolu Agency.
“Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster,” he said on Twitter.
The Fars News Agency said Friday the cause of the crash would be announced after a meeting of accident investigators, including experts from Iran and abroad.
The United States, Britain, and Canada said Thursday they had evidence suggesting an Iranian surface-to-air missile shot down the Ukraine International Airlines passenger jet.
The Boeing 737-800 crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport just hours after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles targeting the US troops in Iraq in retaliation for the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, the head of the IRGC’s Quds Force, outside Baghdad International Airport in a drone strike.
All 176 people onboard died in the crash, including Iranians, Canadians, Ukrainians, Swedes, Afghans, Germans and British citizens.
