Iran hears case on suspected US fighter jet attack

In this file photo dated July 20, 2022, an F15 jet of the US Air Force flies during the 'Dynamic Front 22', the US Army led NATO and Partner integrated annual artillery exercise in Europe, in Grafenwoehr, near Eschenbach, southern Germany. (PHOTO / AFP)

TEHRAN — Iran opened on Sunday a court session investigating the complaints filed by the passengers of an Iranian plane that was allegedly attacked by US fighter jets in 2020 when it was flying to Beirut, the Mizan news agency reported Monday.

On July 23, 2020, two US F-15 fighter jets launched an attack against Iranian Mahan Air flight 1152 when it was passing through the determined air route in Syrian airspace, leading to the death of one passenger and injuring 15 on board, according to the Mizan news agency affiliated to the Iranian judiciary.

The complaints were filed by all passengers of the flight on July 23, 2022 against the US government

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Describing the attack as "an act of terror," the complaints were filed by all passengers of the flight on July 23, 2022 against the US government and 13 individuals and institutes involved in it, the Mizan report said.

In accordance with the 1944 Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation, 1999 Montreal Convention and other international regulations, any intentional military action against civil airplanes is prohibited, it added.

The plaintiffs have called for the payment of financial penalties and punitive damages by the US Army.

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According to the US Army, a single F-15 came close to the Mahan plane for a visual inspection but "opened distance from the aircraft" once the pilot identified it as a passenger plane.