Debris from plane crash near Tehran
Debris from plane crash near TehranReuters

The Iranian government on Thursday denied claims that a Ukrainian airliner that crashed near Tehran earlier this week had been hit by a missile, Reuters reports.

The head of Iran’s of Civil Aviation Organization, Ali Abedzadeh, said the reports on the plane being hit by a missile are “illogical rumors”.

“Scientifically, it is impossible that a missile hit the Ukrainian plane, and such rumors are illogical,” claimed Abedzadeh.

Earlier on Thursday, US officials said that the plane had most likely been brought down accidentally by Iranian air defenses.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau later confirmed the reports that an Iranian missile was responsible for the destruction of the Ukrainian International Airlines flight which crashed shortly after taking off from Tehran early Wednesday morning.

All 176 people aboard the commercial flight from Tehran to Kiev were killed, including 63 Canadian citizens.