Describing the reports as part of Americans’ ‘psychological warfare’, Shekarchi highlighted that these reports are ‘ridiculous’.
“Most of the passengers on this plane were invaluable Iranian youth; everything we do is aimed at defending our people’s and country’s security.”
He went on to call the rumors an ‘utter lie’ that “no military and political expert would confirm.”
A Boeing 737 plane carrying 176 passengers and crew, mostly Iranians, crashed shortly after takeoff from Imam Khomeini Airport in Tehran early Wednesday, leaving no survivors. Technical difficulties were cited as the cause of the crash.
The Ukrainian embassy in Iran also ruled out the possibility of an attack on the plane.
MNA/FNA 13981018001074