OTTAWA – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday said the victims of the Ukrainian airliner shot down in Iran would still be alive if the recent escalation of tensions in the region had not happened, according to a transcript of an interview with Global News TV.
“I think if there were no tensions, if there was no escalation recently in the region, those Canadians would be right now home with their families,” Trudeau said.
The United States (US) killing of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in a Jan. 3 drone strike prompted Iran to launch a missile attack on Iraqi bases housing US troops on Jan. 8, hours before the passenger jet was shot down. All 176 aboard were killed, including 57 Canadians.
Canada said Iran had signaled that Canadian investigators would take an active role into the probe of the crash, which Iran said at the weekend had been caused by a missile it fired in a “disastrous mistake.”(Reuters)
