Trenton, Canada
The countries whose citizens died when Iran shot down a Ukrainian airliner carrying 176 people have called for binding arbitration to compensate the victims, according to a Canadian government statement Wednesday.
“We, ministers representing Canada, Sweden, Ukraine and the United Kingdom, today announced that our efforts to hold Iran accountable for the illegal shooting down of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 (PS752) will proceed to dispute resolution. We have taken concrete actions to enable this phase,” the statement said.
“In particular, we are seeking binding arbitration of a dispute related to the downing of Flight PS752 by two surface-to-air missiles illegally and deliberately launched by members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) air defense forces. to Article 14 of the 1971 Convention on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Security of Civil Aviation.”
Iran shot down an airliner on January 9, 2020. On board were his 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents, scattered with passengers from other countries.
Iran initially denied responsibility for the attack.
Iranian officials then claimed that the Revolutionary Guard believed the airliner was a hostile missile launched toward Iran in retaliation for previous Iranian attacks on US military bases in Iraq.
An international coordination and response group of representatives from various countries formed shortly after the crash to force Iran to plead guilty.
Iran then admitted its mistake and announced in December 2020 that it would pay $150,000 (C$203,000) to the families of 176 victims.
However, to date, despite repeated criticisms by the Coordination and Response Group and promises by Iranian officials, no funds have been disbursed.
That payment failure led to a binding arbitration call Wednesday.
“This action is part of a broader approach to ensuring transparency, justice and accountability for victims and their families,” the release said.
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