As the Iranian regime holds a formality court for a civilian airplane shot down by the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) in January 2020, the families of the victims of the plane crash held a protest rally in front of the court.
The heavy presence of security forces did not intimidate the protesters, who have been vocally calling for justice for their loved ones for nearly two years.
The protesters described the court as a “shameful show” that is only putting ten low-ranking officers on trial. The real perpetrators of this crime are senior regime officials that create the grounds for this disaster to happen.
The protesters chanted anti-regime slogans, including “Down with Khamenei, down with the Islamic Republic” referring to regime supreme leader Ali Khamenei and the rule of the mullahs.
November 21 – Tehran, #Iran
Families of #PS752 victims gathered to protest a sham court hearing held by the regime. Shouts of "Down with Khamenei!" can be heard.
Activists consider this a farce trial of ten low-level officers.#IranProtestspic.twitter.com/tdhpSqESD1— People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) (@Mojahedineng) November 21, 2021
The Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752, which was flying from Tehran to Kiev and Canada, was shot down by two IRGC rockets on January 10, 2020, shortly after it took flight. The shooting down of the airplane took place shortly after the regime conducted a missile attack on a U.S. military base in Iraq. All 176 passengers of the plane, including the crew, were killed in the incident. The regime initially claimed that the plane had crashed, but in face of undeniable evidence eventually admitted that its military had shot down the plane.
In wake of the criminal shooting of the Ukrainian plane, protests erupted in several Iranian cities, with protesters calling for regime change and the accountability of the regime’s leaders.
On Sunday, the families of the victims of flight PS752 were holding placards with the pictures of their loved ones and messages that read, “A trial without expert opinion is against the law,” “The truth must not be sacrificed for interests,” and “Justice can’t be exchanged for reparations.”
Last week, Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the commander of IRGC’s aerospace division, tried to blame the pilot for the incident and expressed surprise at the fact that the airplane “didn’t return to the airport” after being hit by the first missile.
Hajizadeh, who spoke at a gathering of the Bassij, also tried to vindicate himself by saying, “We immediately declared that we had done this, but others didn’t approve.”
This is while the regime’s leadership colluded to cover up the incident and only admitted to the intentional targeting of the plane under immense international pressure.
In March, Gholamabbas Torki, the former prosecutor of Tehran, declared the indictment of 10 persons in relation to the case of Flight PS752. The persons involved are low-ranking officers. The families of the victims believe the real perpetrators of the crime is Khamenei and senior regime officials.
In May, a court in Ontario, Canada, described the shooting down of PS752 as intentional and criminal. In July, Ukraine declared that if it doesn’t reach a conclusion in its talks with Tehran, it will take the matter to the International Criminal Court.
