How To Help The Families Of Those Killed On Ukraine Flight 752

By Lauren Rearick


Like so several children, nine-year-old Reera Esmaeilion had magical ambitions — she was going to attend Hogwarts. Even right after stepping foot onto the storied campus of Harvard, the student and pianist had repeatedly instructed her parents that her future was at Hogwarts. However Reera’s dream was cut short: She was among the 176 people killed in the crash of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 on January 8.


As the The New York Times reported, the flight took off from the Iranian capital city of Tehran and was bound for Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. It was hit by a missile launched by Iranian military and crashed shortly immediately after takeoff. All the passengers and crew on board were killed.


Iran claimed culpability on January 11, CNN reports. According to a tweet by Iranian president Hassan Rouhani, the country’s military mistakenly imagined the commercial flight was somehow connected To the United States military.


“The aircraft came close to a sensitive IRGC military center at an altitude and flight condition that resembled hostile targeting,” a statement from the Iranian armed forces mentioned. “Under these circumstances, the aircraft was unintentionally hit.”


Tension in the region has been high for years however reached a new peak right after an attack by the United States killed Corps Major General Qassim Soleimani, Iran’s senior commander in the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards. Per NBC, Iran’s foreign minister, Mohammed Javad Zarif, tweeted that “human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster.”


Right after Iran admitted responsibility, thousands of protestors took to the streets of Tehran and called for their supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to step down, NBC News reports. Police reportedly detained some protesters and used tear gas to break up audiences, and then some protest witnesses told The Guardian that police had used non-lethal live ammunition to disperse crowds; Hossein Rahimi, head of the Tehran police, denied those claims and insisted police were instructed to use restraint, NBC News reported.


of these killed on Flight 752, 138 people were destined for Canada; 63 passengers were residents of the nation, The Guardian notes. Nearly 210,000 Iranian citizens currently live in Canada, the BBC reports, and several attend universities while in the country. The plane’s predominantly Canadian-bound passenger list was likely due in large part to students returning from holiday break and the lack of any direct flights from Canada to Iran. A memorial was contained in Edmonton on Sunday.


Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs, confirmed that added victims were from Iran, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Of the 11 Ukrainians killed in the crash, nine were confirmed members of the flight crew, BBC reports. Denys Lykhno, Mariia Mykytiuk, Valeriia Ovcharuk, Yuliia Solohub, and Kateryna Statnik served as flight attendants; Volodymyr Gaponenko, Serhii Khomenko, and Oleksiy Naumkin had been piloting the plane.


there really are at least two GoFundMe campaigns, one spearheaded by the Iranian Heritage population of Edmonton, and another conducted in teamwork with the University of Alberta, to help member family and friends impacted by the crash. As next of kin are still being notified, not all the names of those onboard have been released. Below are a few of the stories of these that perished.


Siavash Ghafouri-Azar and Sara Mamani


The couple had traveled to Iran to get married; they had recently paid for their first residence and intended to hold a housewarming party upon their return to Montreal, Ali Dolatabadi, a friend of the couple, told CTV. Another friend, Roxanne Dayyani, told CTV she was preparing to hold a post-wedding party for Mamani.


Parisa Eghbalian and Reera Esmaeilion


The mother and daughter were flying home to Ontario right after visiting family member in Tehran. Hamed Esmaeilion confirmed the death of his daughter and partner in a Facebook post. He called his spouse “wonderful” and his daughter “amazing.” NBC News announced that Reera had dreamed of attending Hogwarts.


Sahar Haghjoo and Elsa Jadidi


a member of staff of the Toronto YWCA, Haghjoo worked extensively with immigrants and refugees coming to Canada, The Guardian reports. According to her associate, Dolores Montavez-Ruz, Haghjoo was “bright, full of life, witty and funny and smart.” The 37-year-old had posed for a selfie with her 8-year-old daughter before takeoff.


Saeed Kashani 


The University of Ottawa PhD student was studying chemistry and had offered to work in the pharmaceutical industry, Ottawa Citizen reported. Andi Zahedi, Kashani’s roommate, remembered him as a brother, saying “he was the nicest person ever.”


Mohammad Asadi-Lari and Zeynab Asadi-Lari


The siblings were among six University of Toronto students killed in the crash, BBC reported.


According to BuzzFeed, Mohammad worked extensively with Canadian youth companies and was remembered as a “incredible human being who worked tirelessly to supporter for peace, inclusive STEM education, equitable and just global health, meaningful youth engagement and social entrepreneurship and innovation.”


Elnaz Morshedi told the BBC that Zeynab “was full of dreams,” and confirmed that she was studying health sciences.


University of Toronto students Mojtaba Abbasnezhad, Mohammad Amin Beiruti, Mohammad Amin Jebelli, and Mohammad Salehe were also killed.


Pedram Mousavi, Mojgan Daneshmand, and their daughters, Daria and Dorina Mousavi


Mousavi and Daneshmand were both professors at the University of Alberta and had been recognized for their work in engineering, BuzzFeed announced. The couple was returning residence to Edmonton with their two daughters, 14-year-old Daria and 9-year-old Dorina. Hossein Saghlatoon, a friend of the family member, called them sweet, kind people. "In the complete world, whomever is working in this field, they know them,” Saghlatoon said. “There is a void space that I cannot imagine anyone can fill."


Alma Oladi


Oladi was a PhD student attending the University of Ottawa. In a statement to CBC, Mohsen Zandimoghadam, a friend of Oladi’s, called the student nice and kind. She talked of her friend’s wish to travel and experience new things; Oladi had just turned 27 and had flown house to Iran to spend her birthday with family member, the Ottawa Citizen reports.


Ali Pey


Pey was a father and the founder of MessageHopper, a texting app for agencies. Marie Tremblay, his partner, told the Ottawa Citizen that the two had high hopes for the new year, while Sergei Zadoyan, head of company development at MessageHopper, mentioned Pey was playful and kind.


Arash Pourzarabi and Pouneh Gourji


Pourzarabi and Gourji were students at the University of Alberta, BuzzFeed reported. The couple had wedded in Iran on New Year’s Day and were returning residence to Edmonton.