The US increasingly believes that Iran mistakenly shot down
a Ukrainian airliner on Wednesday, according to multiple US officials. The
working theory is based on continuing analysis of data from satellites, radar
and electronic data collected routinely by US military and intelligence.
President Donald Trump on Thursday said he suspected the crash was not due to mechanical issues, indicating that "somebody could have made a mistake on the other side."
Asked during a White House event what he thought happened to
the plane, Trump said, "Well, I have my suspicions."
European security officials told CNN they believe reports
suggesting that the plane was shot down by an Iranian surface to air missile in
error are credible.
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| Iran-plane-crash |
The timing of the crash has fueled speculation about its
cause, coming just hours after Iran fired missiles at two Iraqi bases housing
US troops in retaliation for the killing of its top general, also in Iraq. The
exchange of attacks between Tehran and Washington on Iraqi soil was a dramatic
escalation of tensions between the adversaries, and is raising fears of another
proxy war in the Middle East.
The head of Iran's Civil Aviation Authority is questioning
the US allegation. Speaking to CNN, Ali Abedzadeh said, "If a rocket or
missile hits a plane, it will free fall." Abedzadeh asked, "How can a
plane be hit by rocket or missile" and then the pilot "try to turn
back to the airport?"
Newsweek was first to report US and Iraqi sources believe
Iran shot down the plane by mistake. "I don't want to say that because
other people have their suspicions," Trump said, but added, "Somebody
could have made a mistake on the other side ... not our system. It has nothing
to do with us."
"It was flying in a pretty rough neighborhood. They
could've made a mistake. Some people say it was mechanical. I personally don't
think that's even a question." Asked if he thought it was downed by
accident, Trump said, "I don't know. I really don't know ... that's up to
them. At some point they'll release the black box."
"Ideally they'd give it to Boeing," he said, but
said giving it to France or "some other country" would be fine, too. "Something
very terrible happened, very devastating," he concluded.
The Ukrainian International Airlines (UIA) flight PS752 came
down just minutes after takeoff from Tehran on Wednesday local time, killing
all 176 people on board, including dozens of Iranians and Canadians. The Boeing
737-800 was headed for Kiev, where 138 passengers were expected to take a
connecting flight to Canada. Ukrainians, Swedes, Afghans, Germans and British
nationals were also aboard. One possibility being considered is that an Iranian
missile unit saw something on their radar, thought they were under attack and
fired.
"If it is true that an Iranian missile brought down a
civilian airliner, it points to exactly the sort of miscalculation and
recklessness that attends the cycle of escalation and violence we've been
seeing in the region. The innocent people killed in this tragedy would then,
sadly, not be the only victims. Iran must fully cooperate with investigators
and be willing to account for their actions," CNN national security
analyst retired Adm. John Kirby said.
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