63 Canadians killed, PM Trudeau issues statement as Iran admits it shot down Ukraine jet

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated that the country will be focussed on 'accountability and justice for the victim and the family members' of those who lost their lives in the crash of Ukraine International Airlines flight PS 752. PM Trudeau's comments come after Iran's startling admission that the plane was "unintentionally" shot down by its missiles.

READ: Iran Admits To 'unintentionally' Shooting Down Ukrainian Jetliner

Trudeau's remarks

The full statement read "Tonight, Iran acknowledged that Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 was shot down by its own armed forces. Our focus remains closure, accountability, transparency, and justice for the families and loved ones of the victims. This is a national tragedy, and all Canadians are mourning together. We will continue working with our partners around the world to ensure a complete and thorough investigation, and the Canadian government expects full cooperation from Iranian authorities.”

The crash took place on January 8, when it was shot down shortly after it had taken off from Tehran and was heading towards Kyiv, killing all 176 people on-board. 63 Canadian nationals were on the flight and in an address earlier, PM Trudeau had stated that there was evidence which suggested that the plane was shot down by an Iranian surface-to-air missile. He, however, had added that it "may well have been unintentional".

PM Trudeau sought transparency, accountability, and justice and highlighted that the country will not stop until it is achieved. He had mentioned that the country had evidence that the plane was shot down unintentionally by an Iranian surface-to-air missile.

Iran had earlier said that the plane crashed due to mechanical issues but later retracted that statement and said that it was considering all angles of investigation.

READ: Full Statement: Iran Says It 'unintentionally' Shot Down Ukraine Jet Amid Tensions With US

The plane jet had passengers of seven nationalities: 82 (Iran), 63 (Canada), 11 (Ukraine), 10 (Sweden), 4 (Afghanistan), 3 (UK), 3 (Germany).

Iran's President issued a long statement where he deeply apologized for the "disastrous mistake" and extended his condolences to the families of the victims. Giving an explanation for the mistake, he said, "In the atmosphere of threats and intimidation by the aggressive American regime against the Iranian nation after the martyrdom of General Qasem Soleimani, and in order to defend ourselves against possible attacks by the American Army, the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran were on full alert, which unfortunately led to this terrible catastrophe taking the lives of dozens of innocent people because of human error and mistaken shooting."

READ: Iran's Foreign Minister Admits “human Error” Led To Downing Ukrainian Jet Carrying 176