Barry Ellsworth
24 June 2021•Update: 24 June 2021
TRENTON, Canada
Iran followed "reckless acts" that resulted in the shooting down of a Ukrainian aircraft, killing 176 onboard, according to a new official document issued Thursday by Canada.
Iran demonstrated a "blatant disregard" for safety when it did not tell airline companies that it fired missiles at US bases in Iraq before the plane was shot down in January 2020, said the document states, as reported by CTV News.
Flight 752's passengers included 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents of Canada.
"A series of reckless acts and omissions by Iranian civil and military authorities caused a dangerous situation where risks were underestimated and not taken seriously," the document states. "These acts and omissions - both in their failure to properly manage the safety of Iran's airspace and in deficiencies in the development and implementation of their plans, systems and procedures - combined to create conditions where the surface-to-air missile (SAM) unit operator likely misidentified Flight PS752 as a hostile target."
Iran claimed the airliner was shot down by accident on Jan. 8 after it misidentified the plane as an incoming missile fired by the US in retaliation for the Iranian attacks on American bases in Iraq.
The document is based on a Canadian Security Intelligence Service investigation and a report from the aviation authority in Iran. The authority blamed human error, but Canada disagreed.
"While the SAM unit's likely misalignment was a factor, this in no way absolves Iran of its responsibility for the death of 176 innocent people," said the document, citing "numerous command and control failures.”
"These conclusions confirm Canada's view that Iran's actions displayed incompetence, recklessness, and wanton disregard for human life," it said.
Canada and other countries with citizens aboard the doomed flight have been attempting to get Iran to acknowledge its responsibility and incompetence in shooting down the plane and wrest compensation from Iran for the families of the victims.
