Iran admitted it accidentally shot down a Ukrainian jetliner that it mistook for a threat during hostilities with the U.S.
Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was flying close to a sensitive Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps military site when it was downed because of “human error,” the army said after conducting its own investigation. The “culprits” would be identified and referred to judicial authorities, it said.
The three-year-old Boeing Co. 737-800 abruptly stopped transmitting its position and plunged to the ground about two minutes after takeoff from Tehran on Wednesday, killing all 176 aboard. The crash occurred hours after the Islamic Republic started launching rockets against Iraqi bases where U.S. forces are stationed, in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s top general, Qassem Soleimani.
“Iran’s armed forces went on high alert following U.S. threats to target Iranian sites,” the army said in the statement. “Under such highly sensitive and critical circumstances, the Boeing Flight 752 flew close to a sensitive IRGC military site at an altitude and angle that made it appear as a hostile target. The plane was hit due to human error and unintentionally.”
Iran will send the black boxes of the crashed jet to France as it lacks the technology to decode them, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif blamed “human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism” for the disaster, according to a post on Twitter. President Hassan Rouhani said the Islamic Republic “deeply regrets the disastrous mistake,” adding further investigations will be carried out into the incident and families of victims would be compensated.