Iran has admitted that they shot down the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800, on the 8th of January 2020, saying human error was the cause of the attack.
According to The New York Times, the aircraft was shot down after ground personnel reacted to a sharp, unexpected turn towards a sensitive military base. Bloomberg adds further detail stating that the aircraft flew near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps military site, citing an army statement.
A sad day. Preliminary conclusions of internal investigation by Armed Forces:
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 11, 2020
Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster
Our profound regrets, apologies and condolences to our people, to the families of all victims, and to other affected nations.
💔
Iran was quick to report that the aircraft encountered technical problems before it crashed, however, as intelligence agencies from around the world analysed data, it became apparent that a surface-to-air missile system was involved. Admitting the accidental shooting down of the aircraft reverses claims, as recent as Friday, that they hadn’t shot down the aircraft and accused western governments of “psychological warfare”.
Videos published on social media, and confirmed by intelligence officials and reputable media outlets, show the aircraft being struck, catching on fire and then striking the ground. CCTV footage managed to capture the final moments of Flight PS752. More can be found here:
In a statement read on state television, Iran said the responsible parties would be referred to a judicial department, within the military, where they will be held accountable.
Even before Iran admitted they were responsible, governments, including Canadian and American, acknowledged that the aircraft could have been shot down unintentionally.
“We recognize that this may have been done accidentally. The evidence suggests very clearly a possible and probable cause for the crash.”
Canadian President, Justin Trudeau speaking at a news conference in Ottawa (via The New York Times)
This is a developing announcement. More will be added as the story progresses.
What is not reported in the censored media:
– 90 seconds after take-off: lights, communication and transponder on the plane shut off.
– The plane changed direction and left the planned route, heading to a military base.
– During the same time communications between the military and the airport were disrupted, as well as the military radar.
With a pending US-Airstrike, a disrupted radar and no possibility to communicate with the airport-tower, the Iranian-Army had to assume that a cruise missile is coming in. Because of their disrupted radar and the shut off transponder they couldn’t see the difference between an airliner and a cruise missile.
Who has the capability to remotely access airliners to shut of lights, tranponder and communication and at the same time disrupt the military radar and cut off their communications???
To be fair, at least they came clean unlike the Russians with the Malaysian Airlines flight. It’s an appalling mistake but it’s still better to admit to it.
A bit late..l knowing Trump he could, in the intervening period, have NUKED half the middle East!
Their excuse about the aircraft taking a sharp turn towards a military base is simply not credible as any old fool using a flight tracking website could have identified the aircraft as operating a scheduled commercial flight.