Winnipeg memorial site for Flight PS752 victims 'a powerful step' toward justice: family members

CBC News

· Posted: Jul 05, 2025 9:47 PM EDT | Last Updated: 6 hours ago

Canadians who mislaid loved ones erstwhile a rider level was changeable down successful Tehran successful 2020 accidental a caller memorial tract successful Winnipeg is simply a almighty measurement toward honouring the lives of their loved ones.

A memorial tract featuring a chromatic partition with the names of 176 radical onboard Flight PS752 was unveiled successful southbound Winnipeg astatine Scurfield Park connected Saturday. Fifty-five Canadian citizens were killed, including 8 from Winnipeg's Iranian community. 

Kourosh Doustshenas, president and laminitis of the Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims, says it's the archetypal memorial to beryllium erected successful honour of Flight PS752 victims anyplace successful the world.

Doustshenas mislaid his fiancée, Dr. Forough Khadem, erstwhile Flight PS752 was changeable down moments aft takeoff from Tehran's planetary airdrome connected Jan. 8, 2020. It was brought down by 2 Iranian surface-to-air missiles launched by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

"Still, each day, I unrecorded reasoning astir her, and everything I bash is successful her honour," Doustshenas told big Nadia Kidwai during a Saturday interrogation with CBC Radio's Weekend Morning Show. "She could person done truthful overmuch much successful the world, and it's been taken truthful soon."

Doustshenas says Scurfield Park was besides chosen arsenic the tract for the caller memorial due to the fact that a household of 3 who were connected Flight PS752 — Mohammad Mahdi Sadeghi, Bahareh Hajesfandiari and their daughter, Anisa Sadeghi — had lived crossed the street.

"We decided that's the close spot to bash it," Doustshenas said.

Liberal MP Terry Duguid, who represents Winnipeg South riding, said the calamity "hit adjacent to home," and helium lived 2 blocks distant from the Sadeghi and Hajesfandiari family. 

"This is not abstract for us. We mislaid neighbours, we mislaid friends," Duguid said. 

Duguid work a connection connected behalf of Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, offering condolences to the families and reiterating the national government's committedness to challenging Iran astatine the International Court of Justice and the International Civil Aviation Organization. 

"The way to justness is long, but justness volition prevail and each of america volition beryllium determination with you connected that important journey," Duguid said. 

Many household members astatine the memorial unveiling successful Winnipeg connected Saturday had travelled from Richmond Hill, Ont., which mislaid 44 assemblage members connected Flight PS752. 

Richmond Hill Mayor David West said it was the largest wide nonaccomplishment of beingness successful a azygous time successful the city's history. 

"Through this archetypal memorial, we honour the past, we enactment the present, and we signifier a much conscionable future," West said during the ceremony, adding Richmond Hill is besides moving toward establishing a imperishable memorial for the victims. 

Azadeh Heidaripour flew successful from Richmond Hill to honour the beingness of her 21-year-old lad Amir Moradi, who was a pupil astatine Queen's University successful Kingston, Ont.

"It's truly hard to spot your lone child's sanction here," Heidaripour said. 

"My beingness has 2 parts. One portion earlier this tragedy, and 1 portion after. I mislaid each my hope, I mislaid my future. I mislaid everything," she said. 

She said she and her hubby had been visiting Iran with Amir, but helium flew backmost to Canada 2 days up of them. 

Heidaripour said that she has bonded with different parents who mislaid their children connected Flight PS752 and they are moving unneurotic to request answers and get justness for their loved ones. 

"We request to find retired what happened to our kids, wherefore they are not here," she said. 

Richmond Hill nonmigratory Hamed Esmaeilion, who is simply a committee subordinate with the Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims, said helium has lived done "2,000 days of pain" since his woman Parisa Eghbalian and nine-year-old girl Reera Esmaeilion were killed onboard. 

He said helium has dedicated the remainder of his beingness to keeping their bequest alive. 

"We promised ourselves, we promised each these victims that we'll spell to the extremity of this journey,"  Esmaeilion said. 

Maral Gorginpour, who is besides an relation committee member, mislaid her hubby Fareed Arasteh conscionable days aft they were married. She flew successful from Toronto to spot his sanction etched into the memorial's stone. 

"It was an affectional moment," Gorginpour said.  

In a code astatine the memorial unveiling, relation president Doustshenas said the tract volition service galore needs for grieving assemblage members, arsenic "a spot of reflection, of remembrance and of resistance." 

He said that each time since helium mislaid his fiancée has been filled with pain, but besides a driving intent to support her representation live and question accountability from the Iranian regime. 

"Let this spot service arsenic a reminder that we volition not remainder until justness is done. We volition not let information to beryllium buried and we volition ne'er let the representation of our loved ones to slice without seeking justice," Doustshenas said. 

"The unveiling of this imperishable memorial tract present successful Winnipeg is simply a almighty measurement successful fulfilling that promise," helium said.