Iran plane crash: What Iranians think happened to flight PS752

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A woman walking in front of a mural featuring the Iran flagImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

A woman walks in front of a mural featuring the Iranian flag. File image

Iran's government has again rejected suggestions that one of its missiles brought down Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 near the capital, Tehran, on Wednesday.

But how have Iranians responded to the incident?

Some reacted with anger to the suggestion that Iran may have been responsible for the crash. Many others have been labelling it a "scandal".

The Persian-language hashtags #PS752Scandal and #Flight752 have been used a combined 16,000 times by people discussing the crash.

Media caption,

Footage appears to show missile strike on Ukrainian plane in Iran

"I want the world to know," wrote one person, external, "we Iranians don't believe the Islamic Regime's false narrative about PS752."

Others compared the crash to the November 2019 fuel price protests, which resulted in the deaths of Iranian citizens.

"While in the streets, they shoot people," said one user in reference to the protests. "While in airplanes, they fire missiles."

In the wake of the breaking news, many expressed disbelief and shared their hope that the reports were not true.

Those backing the Iranian establishment criticised others for relying on Western media, calling the coverage "malicious" and doubting the claim that the plane had been hit by a missile.

Either you don't know what a missile is, said one journalist, external, "or you don't know what it looks like when it hits a plane".

"This is Tor [a missile system] and if it locks on a target, no one piece would reach the ground intact. If you have a brain, think about it."

Media caption,

Mobile phone footage appears to show the plane in the moments before it came down

Some called on their compatriots to stay patient and refrain from spreading confusing, or fake, news.

"It is better to not spread conflicting reports at this sensitive time," wrote one person, external. "We are already tense and feel terrible. Just stop sending out your own [made-up] news for a couple days and see what's going to happen next."

But there was criticism of the Iranian government, with some asking officials, external to "get on with it", hand over the flight's black box recorders and publish everything related to the incident.

"The more these fools deny they did not shoot the Ukrainian plane down," one person said, external, "the more certain we get that they did."

Among the critics, the clear takeaway is that many Iranians simply do not believe their government's claim that it was not involved.

Image source, BBC

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