Victims of the fatal Ukraine plane crash included students from the world's best universities, and families traveling back from the holidays
- A Ukraine International Airlines flight carrying 176 people crashed minutes after it took off from Tehran's Imam Khomeini Airport early on Wednesday. There were no survivors.
- The victims included 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, and 11 Ukrainians, as well as nationals from Sweden, Afghanistan, Germany, and the UK, according to Ukraine's foreign minister.
- The airline posted a list of all of their identities later on Wednesday, and stories are starting to emerge about their lives.
- Among those killed were students at some of the world's top universities, and families who had spent the holiday season in Iran visiting relatives.
- One was Shirin Hakim, a student at Imperial College London. "His story embodies the dedication and struggle that Iranian students around the world experience when advancing their careers abroad," his friend told Business Insider.
- If you knew one of the victims and would like to share a story, you can contact this reporter at sesfandiari@businessinsider.com.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.;
A Ukraine International Airlines plane carrying 176 people crashed minutes after takeoff from Tehran, Iran, to Kyiv, Ukraine, early Wednesday morning, killing everyone on board.;
Investigations into what caused Flight PS 752's fatal crash are still underway. Iranian authorities have cited technical problems, but the airline has defended the quality of the relatively new Boeing 737 jet and of the crew.
The victims included 82 Iranians, 63 Canadians, and 11 Ukrainians as well as nationals from Sweden, Afghanistan, Germany, and the UK, according to Ukraine's foreign minister.
The airline posted a list of all their identities later on Wednesday, and stories are starting to emerge about their lives.
According to testimonies posted by the victims' family and friends, many of them were traveling home from visiting relatives during the holidays, and students heading back to universities around the world for the start of the new academic term.
Among those killed in the crash was Saeed Tahmasebi, a PhD student in systems engineering at Imperial College London, a top university in the UK.
The university described Tahmasebi as a brilliant engineer with a bright future, and said his contributions to systems engineering will benefit society for years to come.
Shirin Hakim, the president of the university's Iranian Society, told Business Insider that Tahmasebi had been on their way back to the UK from Tehran with his wife on Flight 752. Both died in the crash.
Many of the 63 Canadians on the flight were also students at Canadian universities.
Newlyweds Arash Pourzarabi, 26, and Pouneh Gourji, 25, were graduate students at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, Reuters reported.
They were traveling back to Canada after celebrating their wedding one week ago, the news agency said.
Neda Maghbouleh, an Iranian assistant professor at the University of Toronto, tweeted that the death of "young, brilliant, hopeful Iranians who were returning to their studies in Canada represents an unfathomable loss to Canadian higher education, arts, science."
Hamed Esmaeilion, who lives in Richmond Hill, Ontario, lost his wife and daughter in the crash. He told CBC Toronto that it was "not fair what happened," and said he had to call his daughter's school to tell them she will not be returning.
Sheyda Shadkhoo, who lived and worked in Toronto, had been in Tehran to visit her mother and sisters and on her way home, according to CNN.
Her husband, Hassan Shadkhoo, told CNN she had called him 20 minutes before the flight took off, saying she was worried abou tensions between Iran and the US following the US assassination of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.
"She wanted me to assure her that there wasn't going to be a war. I told her not to worry. Nothing's gonna happen," Shadkhoo told CBC.
The plane's model, Boeing 737-800, is the previous generation of Boeing's 737 family of jets. The current generation, the 737 Max, is currently grounded worldwide following two fatal crashes in October 2018 and March 2019.
If you knew one of the victims and would like to share a story, you can contact this reporter at sesfandiari@businessinsider.com.
- Read more:
- Everything we know so far about the crash involving a Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 in Iran
- Ukrainian Flight 752 was on fire and seemed to be turning back before it crashed in Iran and killed 176 people, first report into the disaster said
- Photos show the devastating aftermath of the Ukraine International Airlines crash that killed 176 people
- The Ukrainian Boeing 737 plane that crashed over Iran was only 3 years old and underwent maintenance checks 2 days ago