{"id":173179,"date":"2020-01-11T21:44:47","date_gmt":"2020-01-11T18:44:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/whaj24.com\/?p=173179"},"modified":"2020-01-11T21:44:47","modified_gmt":"2020-01-11T18:44:47","slug":"under-pressure-iran-admits-it-shot-down-jetliner-by-mistake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mennews.net\/?p=173179","title":{"rendered":"Under pressure, Iran admits it shot down jetliner by mistake"},"content":{"rendered":"

Whaj 24 – TEHRAN, Iran (AP) \u2014 Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard on Saturday acknowledged that it accidentally shot down the Ukrainian jetliner that crashed earlier this week, killing all 176 people aboard, after the government had repeatedly denied Western accusations and mounting evidence that it was responsible.<\/span><\/p>\n

The plane was shot down early Wednesday, hours after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on two military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq in retaliation for the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in an American airstrike in Baghdad. No one was hurt in the attack on the U.S. bases.<\/p>\n

The admission raised a host of new questions, such as why Iran did not shut down its international airport or airspace when it was bracing for a U.S. reprisal. It also undermined the credibility of information provided by senior officials, who for three days had adamantly dismissed allegations of a missile strike as Western propaganda.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s acknowledgment also alters the narrative around its confrontation with the U.S. in a way that could anger the Iranian public. Iran had promised harsh revenge after Soleimani\u2019s death, but instead of killing American soldiers, its forces downed a civilian plane in which most passengers were Iranian and none survived.<\/p>\n

Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Guard\u2019s aerospace division, said his unit accepts full responsibility for the shootdown. In an address broadcast by state TV, he said that when he learned about the downing of the plane, \u201cI wished I was dead.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said he raised the possibility to his superiors that his forces shot down the plane as early as Wednesday morning because \u201cthe simultaneous occurrence of the launch and crash was suspicious.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hajizadeh said Guard forces ringing the capital had beefed up their air defenses and were at the \u201chighest level of readiness,\u201d fearing that the U.S. would retaliate. He said he suggested Tehran should close its airspace but no action was taken.<\/p>\n

He said the airline\u2019s pilot and crew had done nothing wrong, but an officer made the \u201cbad decision\u201d to open fire on the plane after mistaking it for a cruise missile.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were prepared for an all-out conflict,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, expressed his \u201cdeep sympathy\u201d to the families of the victims and called on the armed forces to \u201cpursue probable shortcomings and guilt in the painful incident.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ukraine\u2019s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the crash investigation should continue and the \u201cperpetrators\u201d should be brought to justice. He said Iran should compensate victims\u2019 families, and he requested \u201cofficial apologies through diplomatic channels.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ukrainian airline criticized Iran\u2019s decision to leave its airspace open despite the hostilities.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s absolutely irresponsible,\u201d Ukraine International Airlines vice president Ihor Sosnovskiy told reporters. \u201cThere must be protection around ordinary people. If they are shooting somewhere from somewhere, they are obliged to close the airport.\u201d<\/p>\n

Iranians had rallied around their leaders after the killing of Soleimani, who was seen as a national icon for building up armed groups across the region that project Iranian influence and battle the Islamic State group and other perceived enemies.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of thousands had attended funeral processions across the country in a show of support for the Islamic Republic just weeks after authorities had\u00a0quashed protests<\/a>\u00a0ignited by a hike in gasoline prices. Iran has been in the grip of a severe economic crisis since President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 nuclear deal and imposed crippling sanctions.<\/p>\n

The shootdown of the plane and the lack of transparency around it, along with the restrained response to the killing of Soleimani, could reignite anger at the country\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\n

On Saturday night, hundreds gathered at universities in Tehran to protest the government\u2019s late acknowledgement of the plane being shot down. They demanded officials involved in the missile attack be removed from their positions and tried. Police broke up the demonstrations.<\/p>\n

The plane, en route to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, was carrying 167 passengers and nine crew members from several countries, including 82 Iranians, 57 Canadians \u2014 including many Iranians with dual citizenship \u2014 and 11 Ukrainians, according to officials.<\/p>\n

President Hassan Rouhani acknowledged Iran\u2019s responsibility but blamed the downing of the plane in part on \u201cthreats and bullying\u201d by the United States after the killing of Soleimani. He expressed condolences, calling for a full investigation and the prosecution of those responsible.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also deflected some of the blame, tweeting that \u201chuman error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster.\u201d<\/p>\n

The jetliner, a Boeing 737, went down on the outskirts of Tehran shortly after taking off from Imam Khomeini International Airport.<\/p>\n

The U.S. and Canada,\u00a0citing intelligence<\/a>, said they believed Iran shot down the aircraft with a surface-to-air missile, a conclusion supported by\u00a0videos verified by The Associated Press<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the right step for the Iranian government to admit responsibility, and it gives people a step toward closure with this admission,\u201d said Payman Parseyan, a prominent Iranian-Canadian in western Canada who lost a number of friends in the crash.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the investigation would have disclosed it whether they admitted it or not. This will give them an opportunity to save face.\u201d<\/p>\n

As recently as Friday, Ali Abedzadeh, the head of the national aviation department, had told reporters \u201cwith certainty\u201d that a missile had not caused the crash.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, Cabinet spokesman Ali Rabiei dismissed reports of a missile, saying they \u201crub salt on a painful wound\u201d for families of the victims.<\/p>\n

Iran had invited Ukraine, Canada, the United States and France to take part in the investigation of the crash, in keeping with international norms. The Boeing 737 was built in the United States and the engine was built by a U.S.-French consortium.<\/p>\n

Ukraine\u2019s president said its team of investigators, who are already on the ground in Iran, should continue their work with \u201cfull access and cooperation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rouhani spoke Saturday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and said the investigation was progressing rapidly. His website quoted him accusing the United States of driving the situation in the Middle East to a \u201cdangerous level\u201d and said all should try to return \u201cfull stability and security\u201d to the region.<\/p>\n

Trudeau said his country would remain focused on getting justice, closure, accountability and transparency for the families.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s semi-official Fars news agency reported that the supreme leader on Friday morning had ordered top security officials to review the crash and announce the results.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf some individuals, in any position, were aware of the issue but made statements contradicting the reality or hid the truth for any reason, they should be named and tried,\u201d said Fars, which is close to the Guard.<\/p>\n

Others speculated that the security forces may have concealed information from civilian authorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cConcealing the truth from the administration is dreadful,\u201d Mohammad Fazeli, a sociology professor in Tehran, wrote on social media. \u201cIf it had not been concealed, the head of civil aviation and the government spokesmen would not have persistently denied it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cConcealing the truth for three days is dangerous,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Krauss reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, Rob Gillies in Toronto, Jim Heintz in Moscow and Yuras Karmanau in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

AP NEWS *<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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