US and allies believe Ukrainian plane was shot down by Iranian missile

After the US-Iran confrontation temporarily calmed down with a cooling speech by US President Donald Trump, the cause and reason for the crash of a Ukrainian plane just after taking off from an Iranian airport on January 8, killing all 176 people on board, is receiving special attention. It should be noted that the incident took place at almost the same time as Iran's artillery attacks on US military bases in Iraq.

Newsweek was the first to report, citing US and Iraqi sources who believe Iran shot down the Ukrainian plane by mistake. Fox News said the revelations come as Ukrainian investigators are still waiting for permission from Iranian authorities to inspect the crash site and search for missile debris - if any.

A rescue worker works at the scene of the Ukrainian plane crash. Photo: AP

In the latest development, CNN released a video - sent by an unidentified individual to CNN and the New York Times - showing a missile being fired into the sky over Iran, then appearing to strike an object. During that time, according to CNN, the Ukrainian plane crashed shortly after takeoff. CNN reporters analyzed, one possibility is that an Iranian missile unit saw something on the radar system, thought they were about to be attacked and aimed. CNN is currently trying to find more information from the individual who sent the video as well as how he obtained the tape, but so far there is no additional information.

Meanwhile, AP and CNN quoted US President Donald Trump as saying that he suspected the accident was not due to a mechanical problem but because “someone” may have made a mistake on the other side. When asked: “What happened to the plane?”.CNN quoted Mr. Trump as saying:“Oh, I have my own doubts.”At the same time, CNN quoted Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau speaking at a press conference in Ottawa saying:“This could be an accident”- referring to an Iranian missile attack. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also said in a statement that after receiving information that the Ukrainian plane was attacked by an Iranian missile, the UK is working closely with Canada and international partners to conduct a credible investigation.

For his part, the head of Iran's Civil Aviation Organization expressed doubts about the US accusations. Responding to CNN, Mr. Ali Abedzadeh said,"If the missile hits the plane, the plane will have to fall freely"and that“How can a plane hit by a missile still have the pilot trying to return to the airport?”Reuters also quoted this character as saying,“Scientifically, it is impossible for a missile to attack a U.S. aircraft.kraineand such rumors are illogical".Iranian officials previously claimed that the cause of the crash was a technical problem. In the same vein, CBS News cited a recent statement from the Iranian government saying that the crew on the plane did not send a distress signal. The information said that the crew knew about the crash in advance, indicating that the plane tried to turn back but it had already started to fall. CBS News also cited some reports that holes in the fuselage found in the wreckage are raising questions about whether the plane had a mechanical problem.

At this point, everything can only be clarified when the information in the black boxes of the plane is decoded. However, CNN quoted the head of Iran's Civil Aviation Organization as saying that the black boxes of the plane were damaged and Iran needed help to decode the information. Meanwhile, CNN quoted President Trump as saying that, ideally, Iran would give the black boxes to Boeing or to France or "some other country" for research, which would be fine!