Iran plane crash: What challenges does Canada face in probe?

Experts welcome early signs of cooperation, but warn Canada must tread carefully in complicated political climate.
by Jillian Kestler-D’Amours
Montreal, Canada – Amid vigils, fundraisers and an outpouring of public support, Canada has emerged as a leader in international efforts to seek justice for the victims of last week’s deadly Ukrainian plane crash in Iran.
“The families of the victims and all Canadians want answers. I want answers. That means closure, transparency, accountability and justice – and this government will not rest until we get that,” Justin Trudeau said on January 9, a day after the Ukrainian Airlines flight went down near Tehran. All 176 people on board Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 were killed, including 57 Canadian citizens.
Speaking to victims’ families on Sunday, Trudeau reiterated his promise to pursue “justice and accountability”. But according to legal and political experts, without the results of a thorough investigation, it remains unclear what justice may look like, and the search for answers may be complicated for Canada by the tense political climate.
“Canada is to an extent at the mercy of the Iranian authorities to be able to enter the country, to be able to access the crash site, to be able to get as much information as possible,” said Amanda Ghahremani, a lawyer who specialises in international criminal law, access to justice and redress for victims of atrocities.
As a result, the Canadian government must tread carefully to ensure “that the victims and the victims’ families have access to the truth … to justice, and … to some form of reparation”.
“There’s still so much that we don’t know,” she told Al Jazeera.
First step: Diplomacy
After initially disputing reports that an Iranian missile struck the airliner, Iran admitted that its military mistakenly shot down the Ukrainian International Airlines flight.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the fatal incident was the result of “human error” at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and the United States. Several people have been arrested, Iran said on Tuesday.
The plane crashed shortly after Iran launched missiles at American targets in Iraq in retaliation for the US assassination of top Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani.