Iran yesterday admitted that it had inadvertently shot down the Ukrainian passenger plane, as an Iranian military statement said that the plane was shot down as a result of a human error after approaching a sensitive center of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, and that a soldier fired a missile at it because it was believed to be a "cruise missile." For his part, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zielinski announced that his country is awaiting an official apology from Iran and through official channels and compensation for the downing of the plane, which killed 167 people, after Tehran admitted to bring it down due to an unintended human error.

In a major change, three days after the crash of the "Ukrainian", Iran yesterday offered its apologies for the downing of the Boeing 737 plane "by mistake", but it pointed to the responsibility of the "American adventure trend" in this tragedy.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that his country feels "deeply" regretted the shooting down of a Ukrainian civilian plane, considering it "a great tragedy and an unforgivable mistake." Rouhani wrote in a tweet on Twitter: "The internal investigation of the armed forces concluded that, unfortunately, missiles fired by mistake led to the crash of the Ukrainian plane," explaining that "investigations are continuing to identify" officials "and refer them to the judiciary."

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has ordered the Iranian armed forces to address "default", according to his office. Khamenei said, "I appeal to the General Staff of the Armed Forces to follow up on possible resources of default in this painful incident" to ensure that it does not recur, according to a statement posted on his official website and his account on "Twitter".

Before that, the Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, on Saturday presented his country’s "apologies" for the Ukrainian Boeing disaster, without exempting Washington from responsibility. "A sad day," Zarif wrote in a tweet on Twitter. He added that "a human error in the period of crisis caused by the American adventure trend led to the disaster." The first confession was issued by the Iranian armed forces, which indicated that they were "on high alert to respond to possible" American "threats." Before that, I talked about a "human error" that caused the plane's catastrophe, stressing that the "person responsible" for this error will be held accountable "immediately" to the judiciary.

The commander of the Air Force-Space of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, Brigadier Amir Ali Haji Zada, claimed responsibility for the disaster in a speech to Iranian television. He said, "I wished death, I wish I had died and I have not heard of such news," noting that the missile exploded "near the plane." Brigadier Amir Haji said that a soldier fired the missile that shot down the Ukrainian plane, without receiving confirmation of the launch order due to "interference" in the communications. He stated that the soldier believed the plane to be a "cruise missile" and had "10 seconds" to make the decision. "He could have decided to launch (the missile) or not to launch (but) he made the wrong decision."

"It was a short-range missile that exploded near the plane," he said in comments broadcast on state television. So the plane was able to "continue flying for a short time, explaining that it" exploded when it hit the ground. " For his part, the Revolutionary Guards affirmed in a statement, "In light of these sensitive circumstances, flight 752 of Ukrainian Airlines took off from Khomeini Airport (in Tehran), and during the plane's rotation, it approached one of the sensitive military centers of the Revolutionary Guards, and was at an altitude giving it a similar flight shape to a plane. Hostile ». He added, "In such circumstances, an unintentional human error occurred, and the plane was injured, which unfortunately killed all its passengers." In Kiev, the Ukrainian President, Vladimir Zelinsky, announced that his country was awaiting an official apology from Iran and through official channels and compensation for the downing of the plane. "Today was not good, but the truth emerged," Zielinsky said. Iran admitted its guilt, that it had shot down the Ukrainian plane, even before the end of the work of the International Commission of Inquiry ». Zelinsky said on his Facebook page: "We are waiting for Iran ... to bring the guilty to justice ... and to pay compensation and return the bodies of the victims." He expressed his hope that "the investigation will continue without deliberate delay and without obstacles", adding that "our 45 experts should be able to obtain all elements of the investigation." Ukrainian Airlines yesterday suspended flights over Iran, according to the Russian news agency Sputnik. For his part, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for "transparency" to conduct a "full and thorough investigation" until responsibilities are determined, while Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelinsky called for punishment of the guilty and compensation.

And in London, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson considered Iran's admission of the accidental downing of a Ukrainian passenger plane as "an important first step."

"We will do everything we can to support the families of the four British victims and ensure that they get the answers and fold the page the way they deserve," he said in a statement issued by his office.

For its part, the German government welcomed Iran's recognition of responsibility for the Ukrainian passenger plane crash.

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Just seconds the soldier had to make the decision .. "He could have decided to launch (the missile) or not to launch, (but) he made the wrong decision, according to the Revolutionary Guards."

Tehran: A soldier fired the missile at the plane, thinking it was a "cruise missile."

British Prime Minister: Iran's admission of the downing of the plane is an "important first step."

Ukrainian Airlines stops flights over Iran.

Civil aircraft shot down during 40 years

The following is a reminder of the most prominent incidents of civilian aircraft dropping missiles around the world in nearly 40 years, after Iran recognized its responsibility for the crash of a Ukrainian Airlines Boeing 737 three days ago over Tehran:

July 17, 2014: Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 crashes on a flight between Amsterdam and Kuala Lumpur with 298 people, including 196 Dutchmen, on board near the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

In May 2018, international investigators found that the plane was shot down with a Soviet Buk missile launched from the 53rd Russian Air Defense Brigade in Kursk, in southwestern Russia.

March 23, 2007: An Ilyushin plane belonging to the Belarusian Airlines crashed with a missile shortly after takeoff over the Somali capital, Mogadishu, which was witnessing a civil war, killing 11 people.

October 04, 2004: A Russian Sibir Tu-154 plane connecting Tel Aviv and Novosibirsk in Western Siberia explodes in the sky as it flies over the Black Sea, 300 km from the coast of Crimea. 78 people, most of them Israelis, were killed in the disaster.

July 03, 1988: Iranian Airbus A-300 plane crashes from Bandar Abbas to Dubai, shortly after take off, after it was hit by two missiles fired from an American frigate in the Strait of Hormuz. 290 people were killed in the disaster.

The USS Vincennes frigate team confirmed that it believed that the plane was an Iranian fighter flying to hostile targets. From the states, Iran received compensation of $ 101.8 million.

Night of August 31 to September 1, 1983: a Soviet fighter plane crashes a Korean Air Force Boeing 747 plane over Sakhalin Island, after it veered off course. 269 ​​passengers and crew aboard were killed.

February 21, 1973: Israeli warplanes downed the Libyan Arab Airlines Boeing 727, on a flight between Tripoli and Cairo over the Sinai desert. 108 of the 112 people on board were killed. The plane, which lost its way over the Sinai peninsula occupied by Israel, was intercepted.

Paris - AFP