Still hoping there had been some mistake, she asked him to check for another name on the list – that of Pouneh’s fiance, which unfortunately Peyman also found.
Peyman struggled to digest what had happened:
“We had celebrated their marriage at their wedding party only three days before.”
“We understood, yes, they had died,” he said, his voice dropping. “It is a nightmare even to remember it.”
Flight PS752 had been taken down by two missiles, killing all 176 people on board.
Iran released a report which claimed that the missiles were launched accidentally as a result of “human error.”
The military had misidentified the plane as a threat amidst heightened tensions following the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, a prominent Iranian Commander, by US forces less than a week before.
Like many Iranians, Peyman came to #Ukraine to study, benefitting from the close diplomatic relationship between the two countries, and the many educational opportunities that passed back and forth between them at the time.
Yet, his personal story also illustrates how this diplomatic relationship has broken down almost completely over the last three years
– to the point that there are now regular attacks in Ukraine by Iranian-made drones.
But then came the missiles that shot down the #Ukraine International Airlines plane.
And one year ago it was discovered that Russia was using Iranian-made Shahed drones to attack Ukraine.
Despite the military support that #Iran has provided Russia, Iran does not recognize the annexation of Crimea, nor have they openly voiced their support of Russia.
The Counteroffensive reached out to the Iranian embassy in Kyiv but did not receive a reply.
Iranians like Peyman, who have studied, worked, and fallen in love while in #Ukraine are feeling the impact of this major diplomatic setback.
Although Peyman says nothing has changed in the way Ukrainians treat him, his application for Ukrainian citizenship was recently rejected because, it was explained, he is “from Iran and is dangerous.”
Peyman will now fight this decision in court by arguing that he loves #Ukraine and his values are not those aligned with those of the Islamic Republic of #Iran or #Russia.
“What can I do? Iranians have problems no matter what country they live in,” he said.
“Just now in Ukraine we have a few more.”
The Iranian regime and military don’t represent all of their people, of course.
Reports confirming Iran’s military support for Russia came as Iranians worldwide took to the streets to protest the killing of Mahsa Amini, beaten to death last year.
Last fall, Iranians and Ukrainians came together in Cologne, Ottawa, London, Kyiv, Nice and held demonstrations, all separately organized, protesting both Russia’s war in Ukraine, the government’s military support for Russia, and the oppressive rule.
Kyiv has sent a long report to G7 governments claiming that Iranian-made 'kamikaze' drones used on Ukrainian cities are filled with components which originate in Europe, The Guardian revealed.
The Ukrainian report alleges that more than 600 attacks on Ukraine have been conducted using these Iranian-made drones.
A Ukrainian military spokesperson said some Wagner mercenaries have returned to the front lines after the death of the group's founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Prigozhin was killed in a plane crash after a 24 hour uprising against the Russian military leadership; most of his private soldiers had subsequently moved to Belarus following the uprising.
The government in Berlin is not sending their counterparts in Kyiv long-range precision missiles because they believe the weapon requires German technicians on the ground – and they worry this could pull Germany into the war.
I have always enjoyed writing and the news, so it wasn’t long before I decided I would move to #Ukraine permanently and use my language skills to try and become a journalist.
I wanted to write this article because the relationship between Iran and the US deteriorated dramatically during my studies – the reason I have never visited Iran.
These tensions then culminated in the assassination of Qassem Soleimani.
Studying Russian was not like this, being much more classroom-based.
Perhaps when a country has such a large refugee diaspora, longing and imagining will always be part of learning the language and culture.
In writing this article I wanted to learn how the Ukrainian and Iranian diaspora around the world had collaborated with each other to protest both the Russian full-scale invasion and the Islamic Republic’s oppressive regime.
“After Mahsa Amini, things became easier for Iranians in Ukraine… they understood that Iranians do not want the Islamic Republic, they understood that Iranians did not want their government to send drones.”
Suddenly the whole room shakes.
The metro runs under Greece, apparently.
People are understandably nervous given that we’re in a war zone.
But was that a train?
Or was it another Iranian-made drone exploding in the city?
These days, sadly, Ukrainians have to wonder which is which.
@timkmak wow, Tim. That was one of the best stories y’all have reported out. Layered; textured; complex. I feel for Peyman. The injustice of being denied citizenship based on his country of origin versus his contributions as a human being. stay safe. Great story, Alessandra.
@timkmak I was self-studying Persian for about a year before the Taliban return to power. So I’m trying to find فارسی & دری current events, twitter folks etc. It’s demoralizing to see Raisi gain power, protests put down, and many of the afghani voices go silent; all while you’re trying to seek out their voices.
@timkmak
There are definitely no Brits 🇬🇧 on the ground in #Ukraine, nope, definitely not, absolutely no. Now the embassy needs a security detail and you can’t hand things to Ukraine in Poland now can you.
Also certain special forces who work incredibly hard are in need of a holiday together to unwind and bond. They are amazing divers and I hear the Black Sea is a great place to go. But no, we are definitely not there.
In truth, I have no information at all, zilch, but they do have a reputation for being incredibly helpful people.
@timkmak
These are things that, for the most part, can be pretty hard to embargo. EG, STM Microcontrollers are ubiquitous, $10-20 parts, and available in thousand unit quantities (when STM has their act together at least) through Digikey.
@timkmak I wish you had done more than retelling the official stance. There are serious reasons to believe this was not a misidentification or human error and was a deliberate act of terror. Take a look at PS752 Association’s report: https://www.ps752justice.com/publications/docs/
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