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Canada, other countries say patience with Iran wearing thin over airliner talks

Click to play video: 'Families of Iran plane crash victims put lives back together'
Families of Iran plane crash victims put lives back together
WATCH ABOVE: Families of Iran plane crash victims put lives back together – Feb 7, 2020

Canada, Sweden, Ukraine and Britain on Thursday said they could consider new steps in line with international law against Iran if it failed to respond by Jan. 5 to demands for reparations after the downing of a passenger airliner last year.

Most of the 176 people killed when Iran shot down a Ukrainian jet in January 2020 were citizens from those four countries, which created a coordination group that seeks to hold Tehran to account.

“The Coordination Group’s patience is wearing thin,” it said in a statement, adding that the group had pressed Tehran to open talks on reparations and to deliver justice but said Iran had shown it was reluctant to respond in a timely manner.

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It said Iran should respond by Jan 5 or the group would “have to seriously consider other actions to resolve this matter within the framework of international law” but gave no details.

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Click to play video: 'Iran plane crash: Independent Canadian report finds flaws in Iran’s probe into downing of airliner'
Iran plane crash: Independent Canadian report finds flaws in Iran’s probe into downing of airliner

Tehran says Revolutionary Guards accidentally shot down the Boeing 737 jet and blamed a misaligned radar and an error by the air defense operator at a time when tensions were high between Tehran and the United States.

Last month, families of victims alleged in a report that high-ranking Iranian officials were responsible. In June, Canada said it had found no evidence that the downing of the plane had been premeditated.

— Reporting by David Ljunggren

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