In a tragic development, 77 passengers were reportedly killed and 33 were injured as Iran Air Boeing 727 crashed near the city of Urmia in North-Western Iran. Fortunately, the airliner did not blow up after the crash, and some passengers managed to jump out of the plane and save their lives. Official announced that bad weather condition and poor visibility have been the main causes of the accident. Transport Minister Hamid Behbahani has asserted, “The number of plane incidents in Iran is low compared with the international average.” He also added that “despite the spreading of propaganda against the Iranian airlines, the aviation safety of these airlines is high.” The Iranian airline industry, which is profoundly dependent on the second-hand Russian planes, has suffered from a series of plane crashes in recent years due to its aging fleet of passenger jets seriously affected by the Western sanctions banning the sales of planes and spare parts to Iran.1

• 1. “77 killed, 33 injured in Iran plane crash,” Tehran Times, January 11, 2011, at http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=233900