Iran’s Rouhani demands justice for downed plane victims
Despite yearlong persistent calls from families of the victims, Iran has not yet put to public trial those who shot down the Ukrainian airliner.
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani said those involved in last year’s missile attack that brought down a Ukraine passenger plane outside Tehran should face justice.
“There is no doubt that the judiciary will prosecute all the perpetrators,” Rouhani said in a Cabinet meeting Jan. 6, two days ahead of the one-year anniversary of the tragedy. "Light must be shed” on all aspects of the “incident” before final verdicts are issued, Rouhani said.
The comments struck a resemblance to what Rouhani declared following the tragedy one year ago, since which the Islamic Republic has failed to bring to court a number of individuals it said were arrested in connection with the jet downing. The Kyiv-bound civilian plane was hit with two missiles fired from an air defense base run by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, killing all 176 people on board.
On Tuesday, judiciary spokesman Gholam-Hossein Esmaeili told a news briefing that a preliminary investigation at a military court has been wrapped up and the case will be examined next by a civilian court in Tehran. He offered no further details, such as a timeline for proceedings or the identities of the defendants.
