Victims’ families and members of B.C.’s Iranian Canadian community say Iran’s report on the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 leaves questions unanswered and justice unserved.
“We were not shocked by the response. But still the Iranian-Canadian community, families of the victims, everyone is waiting for real answers and demanding justice,” Kei Esmaeilpour, founder of the Civic Association of Iranian Canadians, told Global News.
Esmaeilpour’s friend Ardalan Ebnoddin-Hamidi of Port Coquitlam along with his wife and son in the incident.
All 176 people aboard the flight were killed, including 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents, when the Iranian military shot the jet down minutes after it took off form Tehran on Jan. 8, 2020.
Canada’s Transportation Safety Board criticized Iran’s report Thursday, saying that Iran’s military had effectively overseen the investigation into itself.
The final report from Iran’s civil aviation body blamed “human error” for the incident claiming a missile operator misidentified the airliner as a “hostile target” amid rising tensions with the U.S., and fired without getting approval from a superior.
The TSB said while Iran had explained what had happened, it didn’t explain why it happened or say how Iran would prevent a repeat of the occurrence.
Esmaeilpour said unless the Iranian government is held accountable, he fears there could be a repeat of the tragedy.
“If a plane can (be downed) by the Iranian government, how is that airspace safe for other planes?” he asked.
“They should not forget it, they should follow through the steps to bring justice. If the Iranian (government) is not responding, they should bring to the international community.”
The Iranian report appears to be attempting to pin the disaster on the actions of one person, Esmaeilpour said, without answering key questions like why the plane was allowed to fly or how the command and control systems allowed a missile to be fired.
READ MORE: Victims’ loved ones say Iranian report into downing of Ukrainian flight 752 lacks details
“We knew they were not going to tell the truth, but we were told we had to wait for the final report, so we waited,” Hamad Esmaeilion, an Ontario dentist whose daughter and wife were killed in the disaster and who heads a national group for victims families, told Global News.
Both Esmaeilpour and Esmaeilion said they wanted to see the issue taken up by the United Nations Security Council.
“Now is the time, the ball is in the court of the other five countries, this is the time to act,” Esmaeilion said.
“My daughter (should be at) school right now, my wife should be with me right now, and I want to know why.”