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Canadian court: Iran should compensate families of downed plane victims

Canadian court: Iran should compensate families of downed plane victims
posted onJanuary 4, 2022
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A Canadian court has ruled that Iran should pay more than CAN$100 million in compensation to the families of six people who died aboard a Ukrainian passenger jet shot down over Tehran by Iranian Revolutionary Guards almost two years ago, local media said Monday.

The Guards shot down Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 shortly after take-off from Tehran on January 8, 2020, killing all 176 people aboard, including 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents.

The crash happened as tensions increased between Washington and Tehran. Hours before the shootdown, Iran had fired ballistic missiles at American bases in Iraq in retaliation for the US drone strike that killed top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad.

It took three days for the Iranian armed forces to admit having shot down the Kiev-bound plane "by mistake".

Ontario Superior Court Judge Edward Belobaba awarded the plaintiffs more than CAN$107 millionaccording to CBC.

In May, the same judge concluded that Iran had committed a "terrorist" act by shooting down the Ukrainian aircraft, paving the way for a claim for compensation from the families of the victims.