Families of PS752 Victims: Javad Zarif's Presence at Our Loved Ones' Graves is Outrageous

The families of the victims of flight PS752 described Javad Zarif's presence at their loved ones' graves as outrageous in a statement. The statement reads: "Javad Zarif is one of the agents covering up the crime of January 8, 2020, and the visit of any of the perpetrators and commanders of the January 8, 2020 crime to the graves of our loved ones once again shows that the audacity of the officials of the Islamic Republic knows no bounds. Javad Zarif and other agents involved in the downing of flight PS752, from Hajizadeh to Salami and from the operator to Khamenei, must be tried in a fair court. That day will come." The families of the victims also emphasized that "they will neither forget nor forgive the perpetrators and commanders of this crime." Javad Zarif, who traveled to Isfahan with Masoud Pezeshkian (a candidate for the Islamic Republic elections to replace Ebrahim Raisi), visited the graves of the PS752 victims and, according to domestic media, "paid his respects to them." During his tenure as the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic, he faced severe criticism from social media users for his remarks, especially after a leaked audio file regarding the downing of the Ukrainian plane by the Revolutionary Guards was released. Mohammad Javad Zarif had stated: "[I told military officials] the world says the plane was hit by a missile. If it really was hit by a missile, tell us how we can remedy it." In response to that audio, Hamid Ismailion, the then-spokesman for the association of the families of the victims of the Ukrainian plane, called him a "two-faced liar" and said: "He is exploiting the blood of the passengers to play the victim." Reactions to Zarif's remarks on 'X'; users: "The greatest cover-up artist" has come for the "remedy" of the elections. Zarif confirmed Qasem Soleimani's role in Iran's foreign policy; if I am the "greatest cover-up artist," talk to Soleimani.