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Iran plane crash: Ukraine says it has obtained 'important data' – live Iran plane crash: Ukraine says it has obtained 'important data' – live
(32 minutes later)
Volodymyr Zelenskiy to discuss investigation with US secretary of state Mike PompeoVolodymyr Zelenskiy to discuss investigation with US secretary of state Mike Pompeo
The TASS news agency reports that one of Russia’s deputy foreign ministers, Sergei Ryabkov, has said that Moscow currently sees no grounds to blame Iran for the crash of a Ukrainian airliner near Tehran, contradicting statements by Canada’s prime minister and others.
Ryabkov called on senior world officials to refrain from public statements until more details are known about the causes of the crash.
Germanys Lufthansa airline says it and subsidiaries are cancelling flights to and from Tehran for the next 10 days as a precautionary measure, the Associated Press is reporting.
The airline said the decision was due to the “unclear security situation” for the airspace around Tehran airport after the crash of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752.
Other airlines have been making changes to avoid Iranian airspace. Alitalia, which hasn’t had flights to Iran since December 2018, says its flights to New Delhi and the Maldives are using alternate routes to those which usually fly over Iran and Iraq.
The investigative journalism website Bellingcat is responding to reports that the site of the plane crash is being cleared by bulldozers by compiling an interactive map of the scene, using pictures and videos shared online.The investigative journalism website Bellingcat is responding to reports that the site of the plane crash is being cleared by bulldozers by compiling an interactive map of the scene, using pictures and videos shared online.
Here’s a useful visual guide to what we know about the crashing of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 –Here’s a useful visual guide to what we know about the crashing of Ukraine International Airlines flight 752 –
Boris Johnson has spoken with the Swedish prime minister Stefan Löfven and issued the following statement –Boris Johnson has spoken with the Swedish prime minister Stefan Löfven and issued the following statement –
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Vadym Prystaiko, has said on Twitter that he and the Ukrainian president have met with US embassy officials and obtained “important data” about the plane crash.Ukraine’s foreign minister, Vadym Prystaiko, has said on Twitter that he and the Ukrainian president have met with US embassy officials and obtained “important data” about the plane crash.
Prystaiko gave no further details but said the data would be “processed by our specialists”.Prystaiko gave no further details but said the data would be “processed by our specialists”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is due to discuss the investigation with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this afternoon.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is due to discuss the investigation with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo this afternoon.
The Iran crisis is being followed closely in Germany. Three of the victims of the Ukraine airlines crash were German citizens, including Paniz Soltani, a 29-year-old scientist of Iranian-German citizenship, who worked at the Max Planck Institute in Mainz, and a 30-year-old woman of German-Afghan nationality and her children, eight and five, from the state of North Rhine Westphalia.The Iran crisis is being followed closely in Germany. Three of the victims of the Ukraine airlines crash were German citizens, including Paniz Soltani, a 29-year-old scientist of Iranian-German citizenship, who worked at the Max Planck Institute in Mainz, and a 30-year-old woman of German-Afghan nationality and her children, eight and five, from the state of North Rhine Westphalia.
The national airline, Lufthansa, has cancelled all flights to and from Tehran until further notice. On Thursday night it ordered a plane from Frankfurt to Tehran to turn back as reports emerged that the crash had been caused by an Iranian missile. A spokeswoman for Lufthansa said: “Lufthansa flights from and to Teheran have been cancelled as a precaution.” She did not say when the ban would be lifted.The national airline, Lufthansa, has cancelled all flights to and from Tehran until further notice. On Thursday night it ordered a plane from Frankfurt to Tehran to turn back as reports emerged that the crash had been caused by an Iranian missile. A spokeswoman for Lufthansa said: “Lufthansa flights from and to Teheran have been cancelled as a precaution.” She did not say when the ban would be lifted.
The German government, keen to keep alive the fragile Iran Nuclear deal framework, has been cautious not to be seen to support what is widely viewed in Germany as the Trump administration’s belligerent and provocative approach towards Iran following the killing of its military chief Quassem Suleimani. But its foreign minister Heiko Maas has said the death was hardly surprising given that Suleimani “has drawn a trail of blood and violence throughout the Middle East.” It was “for that reason” that he was on the EU’s terrorist list, he said.The German government, keen to keep alive the fragile Iran Nuclear deal framework, has been cautious not to be seen to support what is widely viewed in Germany as the Trump administration’s belligerent and provocative approach towards Iran following the killing of its military chief Quassem Suleimani. But its foreign minister Heiko Maas has said the death was hardly surprising given that Suleimani “has drawn a trail of blood and violence throughout the Middle East.” It was “for that reason” that he was on the EU’s terrorist list, he said.
But critics in Germany who fear the government has taken a hitherto over-friendly stance towards Iran, have said the government should be looking closer to home, voicing concern over the influence of supporters loyal to the current Iranian regime living in Germany.But critics in Germany who fear the government has taken a hitherto over-friendly stance towards Iran, have said the government should be looking closer to home, voicing concern over the influence of supporters loyal to the current Iranian regime living in Germany.
In particular, attention is being focussed on a mosque in Hamburg where worshippers have been gathering in the past few days to publicly mourn the death of Suleimani.In particular, attention is being focussed on a mosque in Hamburg where worshippers have been gathering in the past few days to publicly mourn the death of Suleimani.
The Imam Ali Mosque situated on the Alster river in the northern port city held a memorial service, as it stated: “in honour of Soleimani and the nine additional victims” of the US drone attack, last Sunday as well as holding subsequent events to mourn his passing.The Imam Ali Mosque situated on the Alster river in the northern port city held a memorial service, as it stated: “in honour of Soleimani and the nine additional victims” of the US drone attack, last Sunday as well as holding subsequent events to mourn his passing.
Reporting on the services, Der Spiegel, said that Hamburg’s Social Democrat-Green coalition government has been urged by critics from the Christian Democrats, the pro-business FDP and the right wing populist AfD, to cease its six year state cooperation with the IZH, the Islamic Centre of Hamburg, which is responsible for the running of the mosque, amid concern over its growing political influence.Reporting on the services, Der Spiegel, said that Hamburg’s Social Democrat-Green coalition government has been urged by critics from the Christian Democrats, the pro-business FDP and the right wing populist AfD, to cease its six year state cooperation with the IZH, the Islamic Centre of Hamburg, which is responsible for the running of the mosque, amid concern over its growing political influence.
The public homage being paid to Soleimani, says Spiegel, “is acting like dynamite in the debate about the correct way to deal with political Islam in Germany”. But the Hamburg senate has said it has no plans to break the cooperation, which it claimed “offers important chances for the development of the relationship between the city and the Islamic communities and as a whole for the better integration of Muslims”.The public homage being paid to Soleimani, says Spiegel, “is acting like dynamite in the debate about the correct way to deal with political Islam in Germany”. But the Hamburg senate has said it has no plans to break the cooperation, which it claimed “offers important chances for the development of the relationship between the city and the Islamic communities and as a whole for the better integration of Muslims”.
Elizabeth Palmer from CBS News has tweeted this picture of the crash site. She says most of the wreckage has been cleared away and there is no security at the site.Elizabeth Palmer from CBS News has tweeted this picture of the crash site. She says most of the wreckage has been cleared away and there is no security at the site.
Hamed Esmaeilion, whose wife and daughter were killed in the Iran plane crash (see this earlier post), has shared this video of 9-year-old Reera Esmaeilion playing the piano.Hamed Esmaeilion, whose wife and daughter were killed in the Iran plane crash (see this earlier post), has shared this video of 9-year-old Reera Esmaeilion playing the piano.
The head of Iran’s Civil Aviation body has told reporters that authorities examining the contents of the Flight 752’s black box today at a laboratory at Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport.The head of Iran’s Civil Aviation body has told reporters that authorities examining the contents of the Flight 752’s black box today at a laboratory at Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport.
The will attempt to assess whether it is possible to reconstruct and analyse the information inside the country, according to Iran’s IRNA news agency.The will attempt to assess whether it is possible to reconstruct and analyse the information inside the country, according to Iran’s IRNA news agency.
A British-Iranian woman jailed in Iran has had panic attacks since tensions between the country and the US escalated, her husband has said.A British-Iranian woman jailed in Iran has had panic attacks since tensions between the country and the US escalated, her husband has said.
Richard Ratcliffe said the fallout from Donald Trump’s assassination of the Iranian general Qassem Suleimani was taking a toll on the mental health of his wife, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.Richard Ratcliffe said the fallout from Donald Trump’s assassination of the Iranian general Qassem Suleimani was taking a toll on the mental health of his wife, Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.
Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been detained since 2016 after she was arrested on espionage charges and jailed for five years.Zaghari-Ratcliffe has been detained since 2016 after she was arrested on espionage charges and jailed for five years.
She is among up to five people with dual British-Iranian nationality, or with UK connections, believed to be in prison in Iran. Their families have said they are being held as collateral and that the heightened tensions have made it harder to secure their release.She is among up to five people with dual British-Iranian nationality, or with UK connections, believed to be in prison in Iran. Their families have said they are being held as collateral and that the heightened tensions have made it harder to secure their release.
Iraq’s top Shi’ite Muslim cleric has condemned mutual US and Iranian attacks on Iraqi soil and warned of deteriorating security in the country and wider region as a result of Washington’s standoff with Tehran.
Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani said the attacks were a violation of sovereignty and that no foreign powers should be allowed to decide Iraq’s fate.
Sistani delivered his message through a representative who spoke at Friday prayer in the holy city of Kerbala, Reuters reported.
“The use of over-the-top methods by different sides which possess power and influence ... will only entrench the crisis and prevent a solution,” the representative said.“The latest dangerous aggressive acts, which are repeated violations of Iraqi sovereignty, are a part of the deteriorating situation” in the region, he said
Canada is ‘paying for past decisions’ - namely a decision by Canada’s previous Conservative administration to sever ties with Tehran and upheld by Justin Trudeau’s government - asserts a piece in the Toronto Star.
Like other news outlets in Canada, which was the end destination of 138 people on the Ukraine International Airlines flight, the Star leads with developments including the news that Canada’s federal transportation safety agency has accepted an invitation from Iran to send officials to the site.
But the newspaper adds that without an official relationship, Canada must rely on Italy to secure applications and co-ordinate diplomacy with Tehran.
The perception that the threat of war in the middle east has receded caused oil to slip towards $65 a barrel today as investors also focused on rising US inventories.
Crude is now below where it was before a U.S. drone strike killed Iranian general Qassem Suleimani on January 3.
For more on that, my colleague Kalyeena Makortoff is running a business liveblog here.
France’s BEA air accident agency has said it would be involved in the investigation into a Ukrainian airliner crash in Iran.
“We have been notified of the event by Iran and we have designated an accredited representative to the safety investigation,” a BEA spokesman said.
“No further assistance has been requested at this point in time”, he added.
Airstrikes carried out by unidentified planes in the Syrian province of Deir Ezzor overnight killed at least eight members of an Iranian-backed militia, according to monitors.
Several planes targeted positions belonging to the Iraqi Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary group in Bukamal, near the border with Iraq, in the early hours of Friday, both local media and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
The attack, which occurs against the backdrop of soaring tensions across the region between the US and Iran, was most likely carried out by Israel, Iraqi officials said, without offering evidence.
Israel regularly carries out airstrikes inside Syria targeting Iranian assets but does not normally comment on its military activity in the neighbouring nine-year-old civil war.
The same area was also targeted by the US on 29 December in strikes which killed 25 members of a pro-Iran Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah in retaliation for a rocket attack on a military base in Iraq that killed a US military contractor as tensions escalated between Washington and Tehran over the last two weeks.
Weapons depots and vehicles were targeted, causing several huge explosions, the UK-based Observatory said. Deir Ezzor 24 and Sound and Pictures, activist collectives in the area, also said the planes had struck trucks carrying weapons and depots for ballistic missiles near the town.
The area struck Friday is a key land corridor for Tehran that links Iran across Iraq and Syria through Lebanon.
Britain’s ambassador to Iran has been on Twitter pointing out that UK travel advice to Iran has changed and all British nationals are advised against all travel there.
The advice adds: “If you’re in Iran, you should review your departure options and consider leaving the country.”
In Germany, Lufthansa has confirmed that one of its flight to Tehran was ordered yesterday to turn back to Germany, amid security concerns, after the emergence of the missile attack allegations.
It followed the airline’s lifting of a flight ban to Tehran-bound aircraft, after one day.
Iran continues to deny the assessments of western intelligence agencies that its force shot down the Ukrainian passenger jet in the tense early hours on Wednesday morning.
Ali Abedzadeh, the head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organisation, said overnight: “At the time this plane was in the air, there were several other internal and international flights flying at 8000 feet and the suggestion it was targeted by a missile cannot be correct.”
Flight records show there was some domestic traffic around the same time at the Mehrabad Airport, about 35km north-east of Imam Khomeini International airport.
Flight records available online show there were no other flights landing or taking off from Imam Khomeini International airport around the same as the Ukrainian plane was in flight.
Hassan Rezaeifar, the head of the committee that oversees aviation accidents in Iran, said “nowhere in the world” would it be possible to determine the cause of a crash this soon. “Not only haven’t we found evidence to prove the claim [of a missile strike] but we’ve found evidence to reject it,” he said, likely referring to claims by Iranian investigators that the Ukrainian flight attempted to turn around and return to the airport before it went down.
He said he was open to international involvement in the probe, including American, but added - likely in reference to sanctions that prevent US involvement with Iran - that they “should get the authority from their Senate”.
The terrible human tragedy at the centre of the incident is laid bare in reports which are detailing how the flight was carrying entire families, university students, and a young couple who had traveled back to Iran for their wedding.
Arash Pourzarabi, 26, and Pouneh Gourji, 25, who were graduate students in computer science at the University of Alberta, had gone to Iran for their wedding, according to Reza Akbari, president of the Iranian Heritage Society of Edmonton.
They were on the plane with four members of their wedding party and 24 other Iranian-Canadians from Edmonton, Akbari said.“Oh God, I can’t believe this,” Akbari told Reuters.
“It’s shocking to the whole community.”
Borna Ghotbi, a close friend of the newlyweds since they were all undergraduates at Tehran’s Sharif University, said their wedding took place three days ago.
Another couple, Siavash Ghafouri Azar and Sara Mamani, had also just married in Iran, according to a Montreal university professor who taught Azar. The couple, both engineers, had just bought a house in a Montreal suburb.
Negar Mortazavi, Iranian-American journalist, has tweeted this interview with Hamed Esmaeilion, whose wife Parisa and their daughter Reera were killed in the crash.
France has said this morning that it is ready to join the investigating into the crash of a Ukrainian airliner.
“It is important that as much clarity as possible is made and as quickly as possible,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian was quoted by Reuters as saying.
Last year, the French agency BEA helped analyse data from the flight recorder of a crashed Boeing plane in Ethiopia.