Iran not forthcoming on investigation into downed airliner, Canada’s government says
Iranian officials have accused Canada of exploiting the incident for political purposes.
An independent adviser to Canada’s government Tuesday criticized Iran’s handling of the ongoing investigation into the shoot-down of a Ukrainian passenger airliner near Tehran early this year.
"The party responsible for the situation is investigating itself, mostly in secret," read a 74-page report released Tuesday by Ralph Goodale, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's appointed special adviser on the incident.
Iran “has not conducted its investigations in a truly independent, objective, and transparent manner,” Goodale’s report reads. The report also critiques certain international aviation rules regarding investigations, saying they are ill-suited in cases of military shoot-downs of civilian aircraft.
“In the case of a military shoot-down, that means the very government involved in causing the disaster (Iran in this case) is in complete control of the safety investigation, obvious conflicts of interest notwithstanding, with few safeguards to ensure independence, impartiality or legitimacy,” the report read.
