Lebanese Ministry of Information
A Kiev-bound Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 plane crashed after takeoff from Tehran on Wednesday, killing all 176 people on board.
The victims include 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, 11 Ukrainians, 10 Swedes, four Afghans, three Germans and three British nationals, according to Ukraine’s Foreign Minister.
The airline also confirmed that the plane disappeared from radars a few minutes after its departure from the Iranian capital.
The Iranian Civil Aviation authority has found that Ukrainian Airlines flight PS 752 was on fire before it crashed, it said in an initial report on Thursday, citing witnesses.
The report also mentions that the plane changed directions after a problem and turned back towards the airport.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has declared January 9 a day of national mourning.
In the announcement published on his official website, Zelensky also said that he would speak with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to step up cooperation between the two countries to determine the cause of the plane crash.
Forty-five Ukrainian experts have arrived in Tehran to assist with the investigation and to help identify the victims’ bodies, Zelensky said.
CNN
