Canada, Ukraine take case against Iran for downed plane to UN court
Iran recently sentenced members of the armed forces to prison for their role in shooting down Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 in 2020, but Canada, Ukraine and other countries whose citizens died in the incident continue to reject Iran’s handling of the matter.
Canada, Ukraine and other countries initiated proceedings against Iran in The Hague on Tuesday regarding the Ukrainian passenger plane that was shot down in Iran in 2020, further escalating the yearslong case and damaging Iran’s relationship with Europe and the West.
Canada, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and Sweden filed a joint application initiating proceedings against Iran at the United Nations’ International Court of Justice (ICJ), located in The Hague. The dispute relates to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Civil Aviation (the Montreal Convention), regarding Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752. The countries allege that Iran “failed to take all practicable measures to prevent the unlawful and intentional commission of an offense” and also slammed Iran’s investigation into the incident, according to a press release from the ICJ on Wednesday.
“(Iran) also subsequently failed to conduct an impartial, transparent and fair criminal investigation and prosecution consistent with international law,” said the countries.
The four countries are seeking the ICJ’s jurisdiction on the case. Canada, Ukraine, the UK, Sweden and Iran are all parties to the Montreal Convention, according to the release.
