Iran will pay “150,000 dollars or the equivalent in euros” to each of the families of the 176 victims of the crash of a Ukrainian airliner, shot down in January over Tehran, the Iranian presidency announced on Wednesday (December 30th). The Iranian armed forces admitted on January 11 that they shot dead ” by mistake “ three days earlier the Boeing operating the Ukraine International Airlines flight between Tehran and Kiev shortly after takeoff.
The tragedy resulted in the deaths of all passengers and crew, mostly Iranians and Canadians, many of them binational.
A Ukrainian delegation went to Tehran in October for further discussions on possible financial compensation from Iran. The Ukrainian foreign minister said in July that he hoped to obtain as much financial compensation as possible in order to alleviate “Pain and mourning” relatives of the victims.
However, the announcement of this financial compensation was criticized by Kiev, which first demanded the conclusions of the investigation. “Establishing the causes of the tragedy and bringing those responsible to justice must be an important prerequisite”, reacted a spokesman for Ukrainian diplomacy, Oleg Nykolenko. Kiev said always wait “A draft technical report” on the circumstances of the accident.
Bad setting of a radar
Earlier on Wednesday, Iranian Minister of Transport and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami said “The final report” of the crash would be ” soon “ made available to the public “In Persian and in English”. “The owner of the plane, Ukraine, and Boeing were present for the investigation”, he said.
Canada, which lost 55 nationals and 30 permanent residents in the accident, reaffirmed in October its commitment to “Work tirelessly so that the families of the victims can get the answers they deserve”.
On the day of the crash, Iran’s air defenses were on high alert for fear of a US attack. Iran expected a response from Washington after attacking a base used by the US military in Iraq, in response to the elimination of General Ghassem Soleimani, architect of Iran’s regional strategy.
Iranian Civil Aviation Authority claimed misadjustment of antiaircraft unit radar was the main ” human error “ at the origin of the disaster. “This compensation does not prevent the prosecution of the criminal aspect of the case before the competent judicial authority”, assured the Iranian presidency on Wednesday.
