Iran Admits Blame for Crash of Ukraine International Airlines Plane. It Was Mistaken for a “Hostile Target”

Reports of a missile strike have been confirmed.

Iran has announced that its military shot down a passenger plane operated by Ukraine International Airlines on flight PS752 along the Tehran — Kyiv route. The airliner crashed on Wednesday morning, a few minutes after takeoff, at an altitude of about 2.5 km. A total of 176 people died, including 11 — citizens of Ukraine (9 crew members and 2 passengers), and another 82 were citizens of Iran.

Canada’s CBC, citing Iranian state television, reports that a military statement said the plane was mistaken for a hostile target after it “turned toward a sensitive military center of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.” The statement said the military was on the highest level of readiness because of rising tensions in relations with the United States.

“In such a state, the plane was unintentionally shot down due to human error,” — CBC quotes the Iranian statement. It was also stated that those responsible would be prosecuted under the law.

Iranian officials also made personal statements acknowledging the state’s guilt.

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif: “A sad day. Preliminary findings of the armed forces’ internal investigation: human error during a crisis provoked by US adventurism led to the disaster. We deeply regret it, apologize, and extend our condolences to our people, the families of all the victims, and the other affected countries.”

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani: “The internal investigation by the armed forces has concluded that, regrettably, missiles fired due to human error led to the terrible crash of the Ukrainian plane and the deaths of 176 innocent people. The investigation will continue to identify and prosecute those responsible for this enormous tragedy and unforgivable error.”

Iran deeply regrets this terrible mistake. I am thinking and praying for all the families of the deceased. I extend my sincere condolences.”

Full translated text of the official statement in which the President of Iran apologized for the crash of the Ukrainian plane:

Hassan Rouhani
President of Iran

With deepest regret and sorrow, I was informed a few hours ago of the results of the internal investigation conducted by the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces.
Amid threats and intimidation from the aggressive American regime against the Iranian nation following the martyrdom of General Qasem Soleimani, and in order to protect itself from possible attacks by the American army, the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran were placed on full combat readiness, which, regrettably, led to this horrifying catastrophe, in which dozens of innocent people died due to friendly fire and human factors. 

The Islamic Republic of Iran deeply regrets this terrible mistake, and on behalf of the Islamic Republic I express my sincere sympathy to the families of the victims of this tragic incident. I instruct all relevant bodies to make efforts to provide compensation to all families who have suffered a heavy loss. 

I also express deep regret and condolences to all nations, governments, and families of victims who are not Iranian. The Foreign Ministry of Iran will work in cooperation with consulates to identify the bodies of the deceased and return them home. 

This incident, painful for everyone, cannot simply be forgotten. Further investigation is needed to determine all the causes of the tragedy, to hold accountable those who committed this unforgivable error, and to inform the respected people of Iran and the families of the victims about the progress of the investigation. 

In addition, measures must be taken to eliminate flaws in our defense system so that such disasters never happen again. 

Once again, I apologize and express condolences to the families of those killed in this painful incident, praying for those who lost their lives and wishing the families who lost loved ones patience and reward.”  

Iran’s first version after the crash of the Ukraine International Airlines plane was technical problems with the Ukrainian aircraft. A few hours later, a version emerged that the plane had been shot down by a missile, but it came from unconfirmed sources.

On Thursday, US President Donald Trump hinted in a statement that the plane could have been shot down by Iran due to an error. A few hours later, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that, according to Canadian intelligence, the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.

On Friday, reports emerged that the Iranian side is hindering the Ukrainian delegation’s examination of the crash. However, that evening Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko said at a press conference that there were no grounds to claim that.

A few hours before the plane fell, Iran attacked US military bases. According to Trump, there were no American military casualties.

The crash of flight PS752 became the largest disaster in the history of Ukrainian civil aviation and the first in the history of Ukraine International Airlines, which had previously never had a fatal accident or lost an aircraft.