LETTERS: AN Ukrainian plane was recently shot down by a ballistic missile in Teheran, Iran.
A total of 176 people died in the air disaster.
Initially it was reported by the Iranian authorities that the plane exploded immediately after take-off due to mechanical problems.
Later it was revealed that the plane was shot down by the Iranian army.
The dastardly act should be condemned and the Iranian forces that shot the plane should be tried and punished.
Paying a huge compensation for the families of the victims of the disaster will be a slap in the wrist for the oil-rich country.
The act of shooting down a passenger plane deserves condemnation and retribution.
Nothing can bring back the lives of those innocent people lost in the explosion.
Six years ago, Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 MH17 was shot down as it was flying over a conflict zone in eastern Ukraine, killing 298 people on board.
The Ukraine government troops and pro-Russian separatists in the conflict zone have accused each other for the shooting.
No one has owned up to the fatal shooting of the plane.
Last year, investigations by a Dutch-led joint international team disclosed that flight MH17 was downed by a missile launched by pro-Russian rebels from the Russian federation.
The team had narrowed down the exact position of the missile launch site to a field near a village held by Russian-backed rebels.
Even the culprits responsible for firing the missile were identified.
We have been calling for justice and the parties responsible to own up for the act.
A total of 196 passengers were Dutch while Malaysians were the second largest, numbering 44.
Eleven passenger planes have been shot down since the 1950s and there is no justice for the 1,296 innocent people who died.
All passenger planes should be banned from flying over conflict and no-fly zones.
SAMUEL YESUIAH
Seremban, Negri Sembilan