TEHRAN, Iran 鈥� Iran announced Saturday that its military 鈥渦nintentionally鈥� shot down the Ukrainian jetliner that crashed earlier this week, killing all 176 aboard, after the government had repeatedly denied Western accusations that it was responsible.
The plane was shot down early Wednesday, hours after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on two military bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq in retaliation for the killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in an American airstrike in Baghdad. No one was wounded in the attack on the bases.
A military statement carried by state media said the plane was mistaken for a 鈥渉ostile target鈥� after it turned toward a 鈥渟ensitive military centre鈥� of the Revolutionary Guard. The military was at its 鈥渉ighest level of readiness,鈥� it said, amid the heightened tensions with the United States.
鈥淚n such a condition, because of human error and in a unintentional way, the flight was hit,鈥� the military said. It apologized and said it would upgrade its systems to prevent future tragedies.
It also said those responsible for the strike on the plane would be prosecuted.
Iran鈥檚 acknowledgement of responsibility for the crash was likely to inflame public sentiment against authorities after Iranians had rallied around their leaders in the wake of Soleimani鈥檚 killing. The general was seen as a national icon, and hundreds of thousands of Iranians had turned out for funeral processions across the country.
The majority of the plane crash victims were Iranians or Iranian-Canadians, but Iranian officials had repeatedly ruled out a missile strike, dismissing such allegations as Western propaganda that officials said was offensive to the victims.
The crash came just weeks after authorities quashed nationwide protests ignited by a hike in gasoline prices. Iran has been in the grip of a severe economic crisis since President Donald Trump withdrew from the 2015 nuclear deal and imposed crippling sanctions.
Iran鈥檚 President Hassan Rouhani blamed the shootdown of the plane on 鈥渢hreats and bullying鈥� by the United States after the killing of Soleimani. He expressed condolences to families of the victims, and he called for a 鈥渇ull investigation鈥� and the prosecution of those responsible.
鈥淎 sad day,鈥� Iran鈥檚 Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted. 鈥淗uman error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster. Our profound regrets, apologies and condolences to our people, to the families of all victims, and to other affected nations.鈥�
The jetliner, a Boeing 737 operated by Ukrainian International Airlines, went down on the outskirts of Tehran shortly after taking off from Imam Khomeini International Airport.
The U.S. and sa国际传媒, citing intelligence, said they believed Iran shot down the aircraft with a surface-to-air missile, a conclusion supported by videos verified by The Associated Press.
The plane, en route to the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, was carrying 167 passengers and nine crew members from several countries, including 82 Iranians, 57 Canadians and 11 Ukrainians, according to officials. The Canadian government had earlier lowered the nation鈥檚 death toll from 63.
鈥淭his is the right step for the Iranian government to admit responsibility, and it gives people a step toward closure with this admission,鈥� said Payman Parseyan, a prominent Iranian-Canadian in western sa国际传媒 who lost a number of friends in the crash.
鈥淚 think the investigation would have disclosed it whether they admitted it or not. This will give them an opportunity to save face.鈥�
Iran鈥檚 acknowledgement of responsibility was likely to renew questions of why authorities did not shut down the country鈥檚 main international airport and its airspace after the ballistic missile attack, when they feared U.S. reprisals.
It also undermines the credibility of information provided by senior Iranian officials. As recently as Friday, Ali Abedzadeh, the head of the national aviation department, had told reporters 鈥渨ith certainty鈥� that a missile had not caused the crash.
On Thursday, Cabinet spokesman Ali Rabiei dismissed reports of a missile, saying they 鈥渞ub salt on a painful wound鈥� for families of the victims.
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By Nasser Karimi and Joseph Krauss, The Associated Press.
Krauss reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai and Rob Gillies in Toronto contributed to this report.
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