Ukrainian Airplane Victims' Association Responds to Ibrahim Raisi's Death: He Played a Role in the Shooting of the Passenger Flight

The Association of Families of Victims of the IRGC's Shooting of the Ukrainian Airplane reacted to the death of Ibrahim Raisi, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in an air crash, stating, "On the night of January 8, 2020, Ibrahim Raisi was a member of the Supreme National Security Council in the Islamic government" and he "played a role in keeping Iranian airspace open and in the shooting of flight PS752." The statement from this association mentioned that Raisi also "praised the IRGC forces" and then "as the head of the judiciary, he made every effort to block the families' (victims of the IRGC's shooting of the Ukrainian airplane) attempts to find the truth in Iran." The association further stated that Raisi previously "held the title of the judge of death" and had a fundamental role in the crimes of the summer of 1988, which are recognized in Canada as crimes against humanity. The association claims that Ibrahim Raisi "was responsible for many other massacres in Iran, such as the December 2017 massacre, the bloody November, and the Woman, Life, Freedom revolution." In the conclusion of its statement, the Association of Families of the Ukrainian Flight expressed that they sought "trial and punishment in a fair court so that he could confess to his crimes and taste punishment. This opportunity was taken from us, but we must say we are not sorry for his death." The association stated, "We neither forget nor forgive the killers of the children of Iran." Ibrahim Raisi had previously defended his role in the executions of the 1980s. After the U.S. government revealed that the IRGC shot down the Ukrainian airplane, the Islamic Republic of Iran, contrary to its initial false claims, acknowledged its role in downing the Ukrainian airplane. On January 11, 2020, after three days, the Islamic Republic admitted to shooting missiles at the Ukrainian International Airlines jet and stated that its forces mistook the passenger airplane for a threat hours after firing several missiles at a base hosting U.S. forces in Iraq. In the crash of the Boeing 737, all 176 passengers, mostly Iranian-Canadians, were killed. Many of the passengers were students en route to Canada with a stop in Kyiv. Iranians reacted with anger after realizing they had been given false information about the cause of the crash. Hundreds of protesters took to the streets of Tehran and other cities, chanting anti-government slogans, and reflected their discontent on social media over several days.