20:36GMT—4:36PM
IRAN – AIR – SHOOTING – ANNIVERSARY
Washington, 3 July (IranVNC)—The US State Department yesterday expressed “deep regret” on the 20th anniversary of a US missile attack on an Iranian civilian plane that killed 290 passengers over the Strait of Hormoz.
“The accidental shooting down of Iran Air Flight 655 was a terrible human tragedy, and US officials at the time expressed our deep regret over the tragic loss of life,” the State Department said.
“We would certainly renew our expression of sympathy and condolences to the families of the deceased who perished in the tragedy.”
Meanwhile in Iran, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad yesterday called the shooting a “criminal act” based on an “ideology which allows them to commit any crime in order to attain their goals,” according to Iran’s official IRNA news agency.
The US guided-missile cruiser Vincennes shot down the aircraft after it took off from the southern Iranian port city Bandar-Abbas, headed for Dubai.
The U.S. has said the shooting was a mistake, but Iran has called for the commander of USS Vincennes at the time, William C. Rogers III, to be tried in court.
Sources: US Department of State website, IRNA
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