ICJ Confirms International Case Over Iran Downing of Flight PS752

Facts

• Canada, Sweden, Ukraine, and Britain have launched a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Iran over the downing of Flight PS752, which killed all 176 people aboard shortly after takeoff on Jan. 8, 2020.¹
• Most of the victims — who were flying from Tehran to Kyiv — were nationals of those four countries, which have created a coordination group to hold Iran responsible for the downing. The nations claim that Iran violated 'a series of obligations' against the Montreal Convention, designed to secure the safety of civilian air travel.²
• Iran claims its Revolutionary Guards mistakenly shot down the Boeing 737, blaming a misaligned radar and an error by the air defense operator during a time when tensions were high between the US and Iran.³
• The ICJ says the applicants accuse Iran of failing to take all practical measures to prevent the destruction of the passenger plane, and of failing to “conduct an impartial, transparent, and fair criminal investigation and prosecution consistent with international law” following the incident.⁴
• The filing calls for 'full reparation for all injury caused' and for Iran to pay compensation 'for the material and moral damages suffered by the victims and their families.' It also demands Iran return the victims' property and publicly acknowledge its 'internationally wrongful acts.'⁵
• Last month, Tehran filed its own case at the ICJ against Canada, accusing the country of breaching its state immunity by allowing civil damages cases against Iran for alleged terrorist acts to be filed in Canadian courts.⁵

Sources: ¹Dw.com, ²Reuters, ³English, ⁴Al Jazeera and ⁵Iranwire.

Narratives

• Pro-Iran narrative, as provided by Al Jazeera. The downing of Flight PS752 was a tragic incident, but this case is unnecessary as Iran has already investigated events thoroughly. Punishments have already been issued to those involved by the Iranian government through the Iranian legal system, while restitution has been offered to the victims of the families. The filing is just an instance of foreign governments trying to unnecessarily politicize a tragic accident so as to put pressure on Iran.
• Anti-Iran narrative, as provided by Western standard. This filing is a positive milestone in achieving justice for the victims of Flight PS752. Though the extensive legal and political processes can be disillusioning, hopefully this filing with the highest court of justice will provide relief to the families of the victims and eventually see Iran held accountable for this avoidable incident.