Iran official news agency appears to confirm Ukraine jet crash with photo of aftermath
- IRNA, Iran's official news agency, published an image of the scene after a plane crash near Tehran.
- It came as information was still emerging about the crash, which took early on Wednesday, January 8, local time.
- According to reports, the plane was operated by Ukrainian International Airlines, and had at least 180 people on board.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
The official news agency of the Iranian government appeared to confirm that a passenger jet crashed outside Tehran Wednesday morning, publishing a photograph allegedly from the crash scene.
The image, reproduced above, was published by the IRNA agency not long after reports that a Boeing 737 plane operated by Ukrainian International Airlines crashed with at least 180 people on board.
It shows wreckage strewn across a field surrounded by barbed wire. The jet is reported to have crashed not far from the Tehran airport where it took off.
Several emergency workers are shown surveying the crash site, as well as an emergency services helicopter.
In its English-language report on the plane crash, which did not include the image, IRNA cited an Iranian emergency official for details of the crash.
The official, named as Mojtaba Khaledi, said that there had been 170 people on board the plane.
The reason for the discrepancy between that number and the more widely-reported number of 180 on board was not immediately clear.
More to follow.