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Who downed Flight 752? Claims diverged on 9 January
Summary
A look back at the day Western and Iraqi officials pointed to an Iranian missile while Tehran cited mechanical failure.
Who brought down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752? On 9 January 2020, the day after the crash near Tehran, the question split officials in Tehran from those in several other capitals.
The Boeing 737-800 was on a scheduled flight from Tehran to Kyiv when it came down on 8 January 2020, killing all 176 people aboard. U.S., Canadian, British and Iraqi officials said on 9 January that they believed an Iranian anti-aircraft missile had probably hit the plane by accident. Iran attributed the crash to mechanical failure.
A video emerges
The same day, The New York Times released a verified video obtained from an Iranian citizen. It showed the aircraft being struck by what appeared to be a surface-to-air missile.
Ottawa urges caution
At a news conference, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said it was too early to draw definitive conclusions that the downing of the plane was an act of war. He also condemned Iran's attack on U.S. bases in Iraq.
Later, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was identified as having shot the aircraft down shortly after takeoff. On 9 January 2020, that conclusion was still to come, and the competing accounts stood side by side.
