The Iranian Military Prosecutor's Office has completed a pre-trial investigation into the shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger jet just outside the Tehran Airport on January 8, 2020.
That's according to the TSN news service citing the Iranian ISNA agency.
The case is soon to be forwarded to court, the report says.
The trial will begin after preliminary hearings to be attended by all defendants.
Read alsoPS752 downing: Iran may not reveal truth, secret recording suggestsThe dates for such hearings are yet to be announced.
"The military prosecutor's office has completed the investigation into the Ukrainian plane crash. Following preliminary hearings, the trial will begin in the presence of the defendants and their families," said Shokrollah Bahrami, head of the Iranian Armed Forces' Judicial Organization.
In addition, Radio Farda clarifies that the Iranian investigation allegedly suspects ten individuals complicit in the UIA downing.
Among them are allegedly senior military commanders.
Only one person is reported to be held in custody.
PS752 downing in Iran: Background
On January 8, 2020, Kyiv-bound Boeing 737 passenger jet flight PS752, operated by Ukraine International Airlines, crashed in Iran shortly after takeoff from Tehran Airport.
All 176 people on board, including 11 Ukrainian nationals – nine crew and two passengers – were killed. Among victims are also citizens of Iran, Canada, Sweden, Afghanistan, Germany, and the UK.
Read alsoPS752 downing: Canada releases report on crash of Ukraine plane in IranIranian President Hassan Rouhani admitted that the Ukrainian liner had been shot down as a result of an unintentional "human error," and promised to bring those responsible to justice.
On June 9, media reports said Iran had accused six persons in the PS752 downing case.
On July 20, the flight recorders were delivered to Paris and decrypted on July 21.
On July 24, it was reported that data from the black boxes had confirmed external interference with the aircraft's operation.
On October 23, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Yevhen Yenin said Iran would pay compensation to the relatives of victims of the UIA flight PS752 crash, but the process might last up to two years.
On December 9, however, Yenin said that Iran had withdrawn the offer to handle the payments to the families of those killed in the UIA plane crash.
In the middle of December, Canada expressed its position on the Iranian investigation into the downing of the Ukrainian plane, saying it is not credible.
On December 22, the Iranian news agency Tasnim reported that Iranian investigators, during a video conference, had provided representatives of other countries whose citizens were victims of the crash with a technical report on the UIA downing.
On December 23, Yenin said Ukraine had not received the report.
On December 24, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba expressed concern that Iran was delaying the negotiation process on the case of the downed Ukraine International Airlines plane. He noted that Ukraine had not received a technical report from Iran on the plane downed almost a year ago.
On December 30, Iranian cabinet members reportedly agreed at a session to allocate US$150,000 or its equivalent in euros to each family of the victims of the Ukrainian plane crash in January 2020.
On January 7, 2021, Rouhani said all those responsible for the downing of the plane would be brought to justice.
The Canadian government and security agencies are reviewing an audio recording in which a man – identified by sources as Iran's foreign affairs minister – discusses the possibility that the destruction of Flight PS752 was an intentional act.
