Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Saturday said his country "deeply regrets" the shooting down of a Ukrainian airliner, which he described as "a great tragedy & unforgivable mistake", report agencies.
"Armed Forces' internal investigation has concluded that regrettably missiles fired due to human error caused the horrific crash of the Ukrainian plane & death of 176 innocent people," he added on Twitter.
"Investigations continue to identify & prosecute this great tragedy & unforgivable mistake."
Iran's foreign minister offered his country's "profound regrets, apologies and condolences" after the armed forces admitted shooting down a Ukrainian airliner due to "human error".
"A sad day," Mohammad Javad Zarif wrote on Twitter. "Human error at time of crisis caused by US adventurism led to disaster," he said.
"Our profound regrets, apologies and condolences to our people, to the families of all victims, and to other affected nations."