Iran’s Guard Accepts Responsibility for Plane Shootdown

An Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander says his unit accepts “full responsibility” for the accidental shootdown of a Ukrainian passenger plane.

General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, the head of the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace division, speaks at Tehran's Islamic Revolution and Holy Defence museum, during the unveiling of an exhibition of what Iran says are US and other drones captured in its territory, in the capital Tehran on Sept. 21, 2019. Photo by Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images

An Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander says his unit accepts “full responsibility” for the accidental shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger plane.

In an address broadcast by state TV on Saturday, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh said that when he learned about the downing of the plane, which killed all 176 passengers on board, “I wished I were dead.”