The association representing the families of passengers of Flight PS752 made a submission to the International Criminal Court Wednesday to hold the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps responsible for the shooting down of the Ukraine International Airlines plane.
On January 8, 2020, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps shot a least two missiles at the plane, killing all 176 people on board. Among the victims were many students from Ontario, including students from Western University and the University of Windsor.
Nearly 1,000 days later, the Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims has submitted an Article 15 Communication to the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which provided information and evidence to the OTP about crimes that occurred on board Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752.
"In the absence of concrete action from affected countries and a complete lack of accountability from the Iranian Regime, it falls on our shoulders to take this to an international forum where they can be held accountable," said Hamed Esmaeilion, the association's president and spokesperson. "The Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims has worked tirelessly, some of us putting our careers on hold, to dedicate our time to pursuing justice through any avenue available to us."
The submission alleges the Islamic Republic of Iran and its Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps have committed certain war crimes and crimes against humanity against the passengers and crew of flight PS752 and their surviving family members.
"This is not a political issue, this is about air travel safety for civilians. So anybody with their mind to ensure that a crime like this will not repeat in future should be finding themselves to support the file without any reservation," said Amirali Alavi, director, and chair of the Association’s legal committee.