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French and US aviation investigators on Friday said they will be involved in the investigation into a Ukrainian jetliner that crashed earlier this week at a time of soaring tensions between Washington and Tehran, killing all 176 people on board.
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Frances BEA air accident agency said it had been “notified of the event by Iran and we have designated an accredited representative to the safety investigation”.
The announcement came shortly after French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said France was ready to contribute its expertise if necessary to the crash probe.
On Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, citing Canadian and other intelligence agencies, said the plane appeared to have been unintentionally hit by an Iranian missile. The crash occurred hours after Iran targeted US forces in Iraq to avenge the killing of its top general, Qassem Soleimani in a US airstrike.
Iran has however denied Trudeau and other Western leaders statements that one of its missiles hit the Ukrainian passenger jet. “What is obvious for us, and what we can say with certainty, is that no missile hit the plane,” Ali Abedzadeh, head of Iran's national aviation department, told a press conference in Tehran Friday.
“If they are really sure, they should come and show their findings to the world" in accordance with international standards, he added.
The Ukrainian airliner bound for Kiev crashed shortly after takeoff from Tehrans Imam Khomeini Airport, killing all 176 passengers, including Iranian, Ukrainian, Canadian, Afghan and other nationals on board.
Iran invites Boeing, US investigators
Iran initially said it would not send the black boxes to the US, with which it has had no diplomatic relations for four decades. But following Trudeaus disclosure of a missile strike likely downing the aircraft, Iran on Friday invited Boeing and US investigators to participate in the probe.
The state-run IRNA news agency quoted a Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying Iran "has invited both Ukraine and the Boeing company to participate in the investigations”. The spokesman, Abbas Mousavi, said it will also welcome experts from other countries whose citizens had died in the crash.
The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has accepted the invitation from Iran to participate in its investigation in Tehran.
The NTSB said in a statement its Response Operations Center had received formal notification from Iran of Wednesday's crash. "The NTSB has designated an accredited representative to the investigation of the crash," the agency said.
A person briefed on the matter said it was unclear what, if anything, its representative would beRead More – Source
