OTTAWA—Iran’s surprise admission that it shot down a Ukrainian jet is an “important first step” in providing answers to the families of the 176 people killed in the devastating crash but more action is needed to deliver justice, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says.

In a Saturday news conference, Trudeau pressed Iran to take “full responsibility” for shooting down the civilian jet, calling for measures that include an open investigation and compensation to the families.

“Shooting down a civilian aircraft is horrific. Iran must take full responsibility. Canada will not rest until we get the accountability, justice and closure that the families deserve,” he said.

The prime minister said he had spoken with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who said on social media that his country “deeply regrets this disastrous mistake” that caused the crash of the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 on Wednesday, minutes after it departed Tehran’s airport bound for Kyiv.

Among the passengers were 57 Canadians, revised down from earlier reports of 63. In all, 138 passengers were due to take connecting flights to Canada.

“I told him that Iran’s admission that its own armed forces unintentionally shot down Flight 752 is an important step towards providing answers for families, but I noted that many more steps must be taken,” Trudeau said.

“A full and complete investigation must be conducted.” he said. “This is a tragedy that should not have happened.”

Rouhani committed to collaborating on giving victims closure and to de-escalating tensions in the region, Trudeau said.

With confirmation that a missile brought down the jet — an assertion that Trudeau made on Thursday — the prime minister revealed anger over the “senseless” loss of life.

“I’m furious that there are Canadian families that have lost their parents, their children, their spouses. It’s a huge tragedy for the entire country, not just for the Iranian-Canadian community,” he said.

The prime minister appeared moved while reflecting on the outpouring of grief and sorrow he saw on his Friday visit with families of the victims in Toronto. “They are hurt, angry and grieving. They want answers. They want justice,” he said.

And, he said, that visit underscored the need for compensation to the family members, saying that “is certainly something that is going to need to be part of the mix.

“I sat down with a number of families who are absolutely devastated with the loss of loved ones. They are facing financial challenges on top of the extraordinary grief they are feeling right now. We need to make sure they get the justice they deserve,” Trudeau said.

As he spoke, three officials from Global Affairs Canada were headed to Tehran from Turkey after getting the necessary visas. Canada soon hopes to have another nine personnel, including two investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, in Iran once travel documents have been arranged.

Iran’s swift denials that the jet was shot down had fuelled international concerns that the country was rushing to cover up evidence of its own deadly mistake.

But Trudeau said Saturday’s acknowledgment from Tehran was a hopeful sign that the country’s leadership is prepared to ensure a “full and open” investigation. “We need to make sure it’s a credible investigation with independent, international investigators involved,” he said.

Even Iran’s claim that the missile launch was accidental is an issue “we certainly need better answers to,” he said.

Trudeau deflected a question about consequences for Iran, saying his government’s focus now is on supporting the families and getting a full understanding of what caused the disaster. “I think there are going to be many conversations and reflections on consequences over the coming days and weeks.

“Right now we’re focusing on what the families most need — answers and access.”

The crash came just hours after Iran had launched a missile attack against two Iraqi military bases housing U.S. and coalition forces, its retaliation against the United States for the targeted killing of a prominent Iranian general days earlier.

After taking responsibility, Iran claimed that the U.S. was to blame for escalating tensions in the first place.

Trudeau would say only that times of conflict are “precisely when innocent lives are lost.

“Obviously in this context, in the Middle East these days, that contributed to this tragedy,” he said.

Roland Paris, a professor of international affairs at the University of Ottawa and former adviser to Trudeau, said he was surprised and encouraged that Iran decided to admit its mistake after initially denying the crash was caused by a missile strike.

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“It may well be that the decision of Canada and other countries to hold off assigning guilt and to keep open the possibility that this was a mistake created space and time for the Iranians to make the right decision, instead of triggering a more defensive response,” Paris said.

This may help “avoid a prolonged period of increased tension,” he said, at a time when politics in the region are in flux, with the international mission against the Islamic State group and the NATO training mission in Iraq on hold, and with lingering questions about American strategy under President Donald Trump.

But he cautioned against assuming Iran will continue to co-operate and allow Canadian investigators to participate in the crash probe, even if it acknowledged that its military mistakenly shot down the plane.

“To the extent that Canada and Iran are talking to each other — that is a good thing,” Paris said, noting that Canada cut formal diplomatic ties with Tehran in 2012.

“But who knows how far this goes. There are some pretty tricky issues to do with questions of responsibility and chains of command, the question of punishment, compensation and prevention,” he said.

The admission by Iranian officials ended days of denial.

“A sad day. Preliminary conclusions of internal investigation by Armed Forces: Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster,” Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Twitter.

“Our profound regrets, apologies and condolences to our people, to the families of all victims, and to other affected nations,” he said.

Also in a social media post, Rouhani said an internal investigation by Iran’s armed forces concluded that more than one missile was fired at the commercial jet “due to human error.”

“Investigations continue to identify & prosecute this great tragedy & unforgivable mistake,” he said.

That revelation sparked protests by Iranians, who took to the streets Saturday with angry chants seeking the removal and prosecution of officials involved in the missile attack, The Associated Press reported.

Just days earlier, Iran’s top civil aviation official had rejected announcements from Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. that a surface-to-air missile was the cause of the crash.

Trudeau on Thursday made the stunning announcement that a missile had downed the jet, an assertion he said was based on “multiple sources of evidence.”

In admitting a missile was to blame, the general staff of Iran’s Armed Forces said that the country’s military had been on alert for any American retaliatory strikes after their own attack on the Iraqi bases. U.S. planes had been observed in the airspace surrounding Iran, the statement said.

In a “sensitive and critical situation,” the Ukrainian airline’s plane flew close to a “sensitive military spot” belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the statement said.

“The altitude and the direction of the flight’s movement were like an enemy target, so the aircraft was targeted unintentionally due to human error which unfortunately caused the martyrdom of a number of Iranian nationals together with a number of foreigners,” read the statement, carried by the Islamic Republic News Agency.

Still, the flight likely would have been on radar and in contact with Iranian air traffic controllers.

The statement promised “fundamental reforms” to avoid such mistakes and suggested that those “guilty” of the missile launch would face criminal prosecution.

At a news conference Saturday, officials with Ukraine International Airlines questioned why the airport wasn’t closed given the heightened alerts and certain risks to commercial flights. They said the pilots had received no warnings about possible risks.

They rejected Iranian claims that the flight turned toward a sensitive military site, saying it had followed a routing used by previous flights from the airport.

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