Family of Ukrainian plane crash victims protests ban on prosecution
The families of the victims of the IRGC missile attack on the Ukrainian plane consider the decision of the Islamic Republic’s judiciary to be “an acquittal of criminals.” The Association of Families of the Victims of the Missile Attack has called for the punishment of the main perpetrators of the deadly attack in a statement.
The Tehran Military Prosecutor's Office has issued a notice prohibiting the prosecution of a number of Iranian government institutions and individuals in connection with the IRGC air defense missile attack on Ukrainian passenger plane Flight PS752.
This announcement has been made available to the families of the victims of that attack. According to this announcement, legal prosecution of the Islamic Republic government, the Supreme National Security Council, the Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Integrated Defense Network, the Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force, and the Civil Aviation Organization of Iran is prohibited.
On the other hand, this announcement mentions the prohibition of legal prosecution of Hossein Salami, Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, Commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, and Ali Abedzadeh, the then head of the Civil Aviation Organization.
In a statement by the Association of Families of the Deceased, the issuance of a restraining order against these institutions and individuals is interpreted as an escape from specific accountability of the main perpetrators.
The Tehran Military Prosecutor's Office's announcement names several captains, first lieutenants, and majors in the Revolutionary Guard as the main perpetrators of this attack, who should be punished for "carelessness," "negligence," and "negligence."
Reaction to the announcement of the Tehran Military Prosecutor's Office
The statement states, among other things, that the issuance of this notification comes 600 days after the "massacre" of the aforementioned flight.
The statement, in response to the issuance of the aforementioned judicial body's notification, reads: "As you have seen, the judiciary of the Islamic Republic, which operates under the command of the leader of this government, has acquitted the main culprits and perpetrators, including the Supreme National Security Council for the crime of opening the skies and using innocent people as human shields, the Revolutionary Guard Corps and its high-ranking officials for the crime of firing at least two missiles at a passenger plane, government officials for the crime of complicity in covering up the crime, and Ali Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, who is the commander-in-chief of the military forces, and the blame has only fallen on a few low-ranking officers."
The statement continued by stating that over the past 20 months, the Iranian government has "provided no explanation for its crimes other than lies and deception."
The Association of Families of the Victims of the IRGC Air Defense Missile Attack on the aforementioned plane has considered the statements of the Islamic Republic's judiciary to be in clear contradiction with the report of the Canadian investigation team.
The statement called on the governments of Canada, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and Sweden to respond to the announcement. The association concluded its statement by calling for an impartial international court to investigate “this mass murder.”
Source: DW
