David Patrikarakos David Patrikarakos

The downing of a civilian jet only adds to Tehran’s desperation

Drama and tragedy continue to envelop Iran. Just hours after the regime struck two US bases in Iraq on Wednesday, Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 crashed after taking off from Tehran en route to Kyiv. All 176 passengers and crew members on board were killed.

Iran almost immediately claimed that the plane had suffered a technical malfunction but this was greeted with scepticism. The aircraft was a Boeing 737-800 – one of the international airline industry’s most widely used and reliable models.

Dozens of Canadians were on board and on Thursday Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said evidence indicated that an Iranian missile had brought down the aircraft by accident.

Then the American publication Newsweek reported that a Pentagon and Iraqi intelligence official had confirmed that an Iranian anti-aircraft missile system had brought down the plane, almost certainly in error.

David Patrikarakos
Written by
David Patrikarakos
David Patrikarakos is the author of 'War in 140 Characters: How Social Media Is Reshaping Conflict in the Twenty-First Century' and 'Nuclear Iran: The Birth of an Atomic State'

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