Iran's judiciary has announced the arrests of an unspecified number of suspects in the accidental downing of a commercial passenger jet during a major confrontation with the United States last week.

In comments carried by state media, spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said on Tuesday that "extensive investigations have taken place and some individuals are arrested". He did not offer additional details.

Wednesday's downing of the Ukrainian airliner, en route to Kyiv from Tehran, killed all 176 passengers and crew on board. It happened just hours after Iran launched missile attacks on US targets in Iraq in retaliation for the US assassination of top Iranian commander Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad on January 3.

After days of denials, Iran on Saturday admitted that its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had shot down the plane in a "disastrous mistake", saying air defences were fired in error while on alert after the attacks against two Iraqi bases hosting US troops. US President Donald Trump had previously threatened to strike 52 targets within Iran if Tehran targeted US citizens or assets following Soleimani's killing.

Iran's acknowledgement of the shootdown and the lack of transparency around it triggered protests in Tehran and elsewhere, with hundreds of people taking to the streets to direct their ire towards senior officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, amid allegations of being misled.

Videos posted on social media that could not be verified immediately appeared to show security forces firing live ammunition and tear gas to disperse protesters. The government has denied a cover-up and police rejected reports that it had opened fire at demonstrators.

Rouhani calls for special court
In a televised address on Tuesday, Iran's President Hassan Rouhani promised a thorough investigation into the "unforgivable error" of shooting down the plane, the latest in a series of apologies from a leadership grappling with public anger.

Rouhani called for a special court to be set up with a ranking judge and dozens of experts to investigate the "tragic event".

"This is not an ordinary case. The entire world will be watching this court," Rouhani said, adding that everyone responsible in the accident must be punished.

"For our people, it is very important in this incident that whoever was at fault or negligent at any level" faces justice, Rouhani said. "Anyone who should be punished must be punished."

The president called the government's admission that Iranian forces shot down the plane the "first good step".

"We should assure people that it will not happen again," Rouhani said, adding that his government was "accountable to Iranian and other nations who lost lives in the plane crash".

Al Jazeera's Assed Baig, reporting from Tehran, said Rouhani's comments were "a watershed moment in this country because people aren't used to the military and state institutions taking state responsibility and accepting that they are wrong".

Baig added that Rouhani mentioned that the downing of the plane was not the fault of just one person operating the air defence system - rather, there were many issues involved.

"He also said that ultimately it's the US that's responsible for the heightened level of tension, again referring to Trump's threat to target 52 sites but added that this isn't an excuse for the military and other people," Baig said.

Most of those on board the flight were Iranians or dual nationals. Canada, Ukraine, Britain and other nations who had citizens on the plane have scheduled a meeting on Thursday in London to consider legal action against Tehran.

Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/01/iran-announces-arrests-downing-ukrainian-airliner-200114071925923.html

Iran and white beards are like that Zuma...

Collateral damage

Server88:
This is clearly a murder case, one of massive proportions at that and they are just going to sweep it under the table? Because It was done with a missile? or because its "Iran"?

hmmn

There is nothing Islamic about the Islamic republic of Iran.

Recent events in that country has shown the anti-islamic attributes of it's leaders.

Soleimani was assassinated and his body wasn't buried till at least five days later. This clearly against Islamic laws.


They shot down the Ukrainian plane killing 176 people and they denied ever shooting the plane.
They had to own up when real evidence was coming from everywhere.
This makes them liars, another action against Islamic tenets.


That country should be renamed and Islam removed from it's name

Thejustw14:
Iran and white beards are like that Zuma...

...

What happened to Iran is somehow similar to the incident of Sept 26, 1983 where the soviet Union's early-warning systems detected an incoming missile strike from the United States. The normal protocol in that situation is for the military to retaliate with a nuclear attack on its own.

However, officer Stanislav Petrov whose designation was to monitor apparent enemy missile decided not to report to the military top hierachies and dismised the warning as a false alarm. He used his personal dicretion to conclude that the USA would not dare launch that kind of attack when they know the soviet also have a nuclear missile and also he decoded some erratic signals from the system.

For Iran, their argument was that the airplane was closer to their rocket station and the signal picked it up falsely which led their military to launch the strike directly.

Either way, it was nice for them to admit they shot the airplane coz they cannot hide the truth from the world.

Let the arrest continue.

Say no to evil and terrorists

Lady uses her menstrual blood to cook for her boyfriend check my signature for link

Iran should keep deceiving themselves.

Useless Iranian government should first arrest itself

BAZTARDS. .Their terrorist grand president Ayatollah MUST STEP DOWN

Very costly mistake from the side of Iran

Saving face to avoid the protest rocking the country

Ok

Crazy leaders loosing home front support

This is what the power of the people can do, after the massive protest by it's citizen now they have to take responsibilities and accept their mistakes.


Naija people when we go get am right?

Ok

Trying to save face and push some nobodies under the bus. But truth is, they were ordered to fire by the Ayatollah himself

Thejustw14:
Iran and white beards are like that Zuma...

They keep their beards super neat, though. Ironically, from mocking the bearded mullahs even westerners are now keeping beards in unconscious imitation of the very people they are maligning.

Reminds me of Arnold Schwarzenegger's action film ' Collateral Damage '

Unintended and usually disastrous consequences of war on civilians.

BLOOD SUCKERS

I no understand oo

Who downed the airplane? Was it the suspects? Wasn't it the government in charge of the missiles and ordered the strike? Why can't they take the blame?

This Iran is beginning to look like Nigeria in someway

I pity dey soldier incharge of dey China made S-400 sold to them by Russia dey will use him as scape goat

Finally Iran has lost

Nawa o...So na so people just die like that.

Even if they like, they should self-destruct.This will never erase the fact that Iran is an islamic terrorist nation.

I don’t trust them