Global News has confirmed multiple people from Durham were aboard Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, which went down shortly after takeoff from Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport on Jan. 8.
One of them was Omid Arsalani’s sister, Evin, who lived in Ajax.
“My sister and I were really tight,” Arsalani said, holding back tears. “She was very loving, very caring, very sweet.”
Evin, her husband Hiva and their young daughter Kurdia were in Iran for a wedding. Evin’s birthday was on Jan. 2 — the last time Arsalani spoke with his sister.
“‘If you have a brother and you love him, you share this with him.’ That’s the last thing I got from her; it’s the last message I have on my Instagram,” Arsalani said.
“I never got to respond to it properly.”
Evin reportedly worked at CIBC as a business analyst.
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“We are deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic loss of Evin, Hiva and their young daughter,” a spokesperson for CIBC told Global News in a statement.
“Evin will be missed by her colleagues and friends here at CIBC. Our thoughts and condolences are with their families at this difficult time.”
Ontario Tech University has also confirmed the death of Dr. Razgar Rahimi, who was a sessional instructor with the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science.
The faculty member died alongside his wife and infant child Jiwan.
Rahimi had also received a PhD in electrical and computer engineering from Ontario Tech in 2018.
On its website, the university says it offers “its deepest condolences to the family, colleagues and friends of Dr. Rahimi, and to everyone who is mourning the loss of loved ones in connection with the tragedy in Iran.”
Grief counsellors will be available for students at the university’s north campus.
Students who need help are also being encouraged to call student mental health services.