At a time when many were concerned about escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran, Canadians woke up early Wednesday morning to the shocking news that Ukrainian International Airlines Flight PS752 crashed near Tehran.
All 176 souls aboard the commercial flight, 138 of those destined for Canada on a connecting flight, were killed. Of those, 63 were Canadians.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a news conference Thursday, giving Canadians the terrible news that our government believes the plane was shot down by an Iranian surface to air missile.
While the strike could have been unintentional, the results of it are irreversible.
Now parents are grieving the sudden loss of their children, children are left without parents and communities who, last week seemed far removed from the consequences of a potential war between the U.S. and Iran, are this week bearing the full brunt of it.
Read More: At least 13 people from B.C. among victims in fatal Iran plane crash
This is a devastating reminder of how fragile our world is right now and how you can never truly predict who the victims of these conflicts will be, except that they are often the innocent.
As Canadians all we can do now is continue to advocate for restraint and peaceful resolutions to conflict around the world as we suffer this heavy loss of lives.
Read More: ‘Full of smiles’: Friend mourns Iran plane crash victim who wanted to build a life in Canada
Related: Iran believed to have shot down airliner, perhaps by mistake: Trudeau
- Williams Lake Tribune
Do you have a comment about this story? email:
editor@wltribune.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.