Tehran (IP) - Head of Civil Aviation Organization of Iran said that to undermine what it has committed and its defeat in the world, the US politicians have claimed that the Ukrainian International Airlines Boeing 737-800, flying in Iran's sky has been hit by Iranian missiles.

Iran Press/ Iran News: Ali Abedzadeh in an exclusive interview with Iran Press on Friday on the sideline of a news conference on the Ukrainian International Airlines Boeing 737-800 crash killing Iranians and Iranian-Canadians said: "Due to Iran's political regional and international circumstances the US has made the biggest mistake against human rights."

"In order to make what it has committed and its defeat in the world insignificant, the US politicians claim that the Ukrainian International Airlines Boeing 737-800, flying in Iran's sky, has been hit by Iranian missile which is totally false and rejected," he added.

The official highlighted: "I wonder how the US has reached the point that the plane has been hit by Iranian missile and has enough information. If it has such information, it is duty-bound to share its information with the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). ICAO is a specialized agency of the United Nations and the country where the crash occurred is responsible for the plane crash investigation."

He stated that Iran is quite sure the centers in charge of the incidents in the UK, Canada, and the US would not accept or agree with the US politicians' claim.

CAO.IRI's chief said that Ukraine, as the crashed-plane owner, is responsible to share the needed information with Iran, which has the responsibility of the investigation due to the site of the crash, which Ukraine has already done. Already Ukrainian experts are sent to cooperate with Iranian counterparts to analyze the incident.

Abedzadeh also stated the US, the plane manufacturer, Canada, and Sweden, as the states which lost their citizens, were also invited to contribute to the investigation.

The Civil Aviation Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran (CAO.IRI) chief executive added that based on international law, France, as the plane's engine manufacturer, has been invited to Iran for joining the investigation process.

The plane belonging to Ukrainian airlines crashed near Tehran minutes after the take-off from Imam Khomeini Airport after its engine caught fire. All the 167 passengers and 9 crew members were killed in the crash. 

During the past 15 months, two crashes involving the US Boeing Max 737 plane occurred, calling into question the safety of this kind of airplane.

In March 2019, more than 157 people were killed in a crash of a Boeing Max 737 belonging to the Ethiopian Airlines. Also, 189 people were killed due to the crash of a Boeing Max 737 belonging to Indonesian airline in October 2018.

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