Thank you very much for joining us after days of denials iran has admitted its military shot down a ukrainian passenger jet by accident killing all 176 people on board but ukraines president says quote for admission of guilt and an official apology us still required the plane crash only after takeoff from tehran on wednesday after iran 5 missiles saw getting u. S. Forces based in iraq we begin our coverage with this report from catch and opus haya. Iran has admitted its military unintentionally shot down the street crimi in plain killing all 176 people on board president Hassan Rouhani has described it as a great tragedy and unforgivable mistake irans foreign minister to votes the reef express his condolences human error he wrote at a time of crisis caused by us adventurism lead to disaster. This i say to readiness the fact that everybody is expecting some sort of retaliation from the us that some low level operator sitting in a missile battery ole miss its all blip and launched a missile at it. For days they ran denied responsibility but the u. S. And other western countries said they had evidence that proved otherwise canada says its investigators are waiting for to iran to give them full access to date the iranians have issued 2 visas and we expect the other visas will be granted soon so we can begin providing Consular Services help with the dental fixation of the victims and obvious the participate in the investigation. Criticism was raised when debris from the wreckage was moved from the crash site possibly tainting evidence but now the attention may turn to a political fall out for iran doing political things behind the scenes to say ok if we say it was unfortunate accident what are the repercussions going to be because by now they should be looking at the major pieces of wreckage they may well have x. Rayed the bodies the announcement comes a day after a brand gave a Ukrainian Team access to the planes black boxes evidence that could be crucial for putting together a timeline that is measure camembert in the 1st replied to begin with a reconstruction of the conversations that took place before the crash we also have access to the dispatchers records of the Flight Control center tehran airport and our pilots. Hours before the plane crashed iran launched missiles targeting a u. S. Military in iraq and irans air Defense Forces were on high alert with International Pressure mounting nato began to weigh in on the investigation. The accidental strike on the plane has now sparked an International Investigation that could complicate regional tensions even further. To the young al jazeera. Well have reaction from washington in just a moment with reynolds right for us to our correspondent in tehran assad so an admission of responsibility after days of denials whats prompted it. Well yes the days of denali had many people within the government and also the Aviation Authority denying that it was a missile strike but now this morning the general military staff has said that it was the Missile Defense system that brought down that airplane they say that the airplane had taken a turn towards revolutionary guard sensitive site and this missile was shot. Hit by a missed it was a mistake it was human error they say they have said the condolences are with the families of the victims and hes all divorce all said that the revolutionary guard will go on state t. V. And explain to the iranian people whats happened now this is a sensitive issue people for days here have been listening to the government the governments did not as they wasnt them but now this morning the government president rouhani have come out and said that yes it was an Iranian Missile that porch the airplane down now increasingly we have canada and america saying that they had evidence that suggested that iran had shut it shut the airplane down yet seen footage on social media but also the New York Times had released a video. Showed a projectile which we now know was a missile launched and hitting a target in the sky the target was the airplane caught fire we saw the footage showing the airplane drop to the ground and explode on impact yeah the raining saying outside that this was human error the ukrainian president vladimir selenski has posted a message on facebook saying iran has faded guilty to crashing the ukrainian plane but when cyst on a full admission of guilt we expect from iran assurances of their readiness for a full and open investigation bringing those responsible to justice then return of the bodies of the dead a payment of compensation an official apology so diplomatic channels so our side was to rons response to that likely to be. Well president rouhani has put out a longer statement and in that statement he did say he apologizes to the families he said that this is not something that they can get past they need to thorough investigation to get to the bottom of how it happened and those responsible must be prosecuted and the public made aware and let me just remind you of some of the denials that we heard yesterday we heard the Foreign Ministry spokesman a bus most of the say that the western media was engaging in suspicious propaganda we had a government spokesman. Say that the United States was lying that the United States and its friends were rubbing salt in the wounds of the families of the wounded he said that this was psychological warfare we had the head of the Aviation Organization in this country in iran say that it was scientifically impossible and illogical that a missile put down that airplane earrings would be thinking youve given us these denials from the government to the aviation authorities what what changed your mind were also hearing from state to media that the Supreme LeaderAyatollah Khamenei was made aware that the myside had bought the plane yesterday afternoon on friday afternoon assoon as he was made aware he convened a National Security meeting and said that the iranian people must be made aware of this now there will be anger in this country but also embarrassment in nationally and internationally in 1988 the u. S. Navy brought down an iranian airliner and just days ago president rouhani tweeted that donald trump reminding him that thats what america had done and for years iran has said to the United States how could you not tell the difference between a military aircraft and a civilian aircraft now it seems like iran has made a mistake here in the military here has made a mistake and theyre facing up to that and many iranians feel that this is also a watershed moment theyre not used to their government admitting that theyve done something wrong thank you for that big in tehran for us lets cross over to washington d. C. Now and rob reynolds the rainy and said meeting responsibility but also saying that this is a result of course here less adventurous and to some reaction from there. Well it is 3 oclock in the morning here folly so there hasnt been any reaction to that statement by foreign minister. Zarif of iran. We do expect that once the sun comes up here in washington there will be some pretty vigorous pushback against any employee implying by the iranians that the u. S. Was somehow culpable in the end for the shooting down of the airplane of course it was the assassination by u. S. Drone strike of a general qassam so im on a that brought the region into crisis and eventually brought about a response by iran firing missiles at us iraqi bases in iraq and then this tragedy unfolded we have not had any response here to our inquiries for comment but in canada Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau has issued a statement after saying 1st off that the it that the iranians had acknowledged that their armed forces brought down flight 752. 00 mr traduce said our focus remains closure accountability transparency and justice for the families of the loved ones of the victims this is a National Tragedy and all canadians are mourning together we will continue working with our partners around the world to ensure a complete and thorough investigation and the Prime Minister says the canadian government expects full cooperation from iranian authorities. They were additional u. S. Sanctions against iran following. Even the missiles targeting american bases in iraq what actions can we expect now after this admission front from iran what consequences for iran. There could be additional sanctions although the United States has imposed a great deal of economic sanctions on iran and just today as you as you alluded to a new sanctions against 8 Senior Iranian leaders and some of the countries Metal Industry there might be a few things that the u. S. Could find still remaining that it could sanction but theres not very much left for them or President Trump has indicated his desire to. Back away from a crisis point so it is i think more likely that you will see rhetorical responses a condemnation of iraq from the u. S. President for apparently lying and covering up the true cause of this incident and since u. S. Intelligence agencies had said several days ago they had good evidence that the Iranian Missile struck the ukrainian airplane theres likely to be certain element of we told you so as well thank you for that rob rob reynolds live for us in washington d. C. Now on to other world news and 3 days of mourning have begun in oman after the death of its leader Sultan Qaboos spain side outside the middle east as long as ruling warnock died after a long illness these are live pictures right now from his you know recession in muscat. Oman. Been credited with modernizing the gulf country and mediating between rivals in a very volatile region rob matheson looks back at his life. Saeed al saeed was an only son born in 1942 a life of royal privilege and to a father he would overthrow 30 years later sultan co boss was educated in oman and then at a private school in the u. K. Before graduating from Sandhurst Military Academy and serving in the british army for several months on his return to a man in 1966 his determination to modernize his country is said to have been ignored by his father. 4 years later backed by the british Sultan Qaboos seize the throne he was immediately plunged into his 1st crisis an uprising by communists in though far in the south of a man who wanted independence it took a further 6 years before the fighting ended with the man being supported by forces from britain jordan and iran. A mans links with iran as well as its Foreign Policy of maintaining good relations with other neighboring countries have made it one of the main negotiators in the gulf that flexible Foreign Policy has been controversial in october 28th sort on caboose met israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu in the omani capital muscat the meeting dismayed critics who said arab states should not be hosting israeli leaders until peace was established between israel and the palestinians a mans foreign minister said his country was simply facilitating efforts towards negotiations so it had rarely been seen in public since he went through lengthy medical treatment in germany in 2015 he was unmarried and had neither children nor siblings and he did not publicly name a successor. Also time cabooses successor was sworn in a short time ago hyphen bin terry count sides seen here among the mourners was chosen to replace the longtime leader he was Sultan Campbell says cousin and the countrys heritage and culture minister lets bring in hashem who covers this region for a 6 sensitively hashim the challenge of course initially with that thought on couples didnt have an heir there was no heir apparent but a successor was named fairly quickly his cousin of course and this is happening in a very orderly manner what message is a man trying to send here. It is quite obvious from this orderly transition that haitham been have the blessing of sultan kabul so this is someone whos who Sultan Qaboos said i really like this guy and i want him to take over the royal court decided to convene wise after the death to honor the the the blessing of the or salt and come about with this with transition and success swift succession that paves the way to his humble now to leave the nation he has 2 messages one addressed to the International Community that of this very particular moment mobbed by uncertainty of the risk of a full blown military confrontation between iran and the u. S. Can still rely on a key player in the region with the potential to mediate any. Outcome or narrow the differences between americans. Will continue in the footsteps of what. Was managed to achieve so continuity a message of continuity but why haitham been taric in the days leading up to this death announcement of the death of small town couples there were a lot of names circulating as far as you know who could be his successor why his cousin heighth and then tarika was contra minister of course 30 or 31 of the most important aspects of the post. Era will be the focus on the versifying the economy moving away from oil and gas wish which was are now depleting in their own man to do that you need someone like haitham been because of his economic background this is someone that has gone through a different port for years in the past that put him in direct contact with the with the use of and here in the stands the massive challenges oh man has one of the lowest g. D. P. Is in the region. Surrounded by extremely wealthy nations like the United Arab Emirates and saudi arabia this is going to put further strains on the on the country and those resources are depleting you would have someone who will take this as a huge decision to diversify the economy and this is something which is going to lead to massive transformation because you know if you want to suddenly diversify the economy you have to rebuild the infrastructure you have to allow tourism to thrive in your country you have to reform the country you have to open up the society and this is not an easy thing to do right what consequences what implications for the region of course Sultan Qaboos was a discreet neutral mediator in the various crises in this region will this new leader hyphen been taric be able to fill. His shows will be will he be as well respected as his cousin. Was loss of the life is all this myth about about the man who came to power in 1970 and completely transformed chance for a man who faced many challenges during his rule by him managed to overcome those obstacles unify all the romanies and move forward with the small budget that he has compared to the mighty neighbors and put his country on the map as a key player in the regional arena where we might see a change in style. Because i hate them been part of it is the relatively younger. Couples who will definitely have to diversify the economy and put into place major reforms in the country in terms of the substance we will definitely continue to see a country that is trying to build bridges with all the key. In the reason trying to maintain that truly has very well brilliantly played which is getting it with a different name we we say man as you say a minus played a very intro being a mediator therefore of course trying to end the conflict in yemen in the gulf crisis between qatar and saudi arabia and the u. A. E. They didnt really take any sides. But what have they achieved concrete need even when it comes to yemen i mean that conflict is still going on what has amman achieved for for this we we gentlemen you may be able wear it but many of our viewers may not understand the role its played at it last year in the had it not been for the role and influence there would never have been any political talks between the rival parties in yemen you would never see the talks in install call you would never have seen the talks in kuwait or oman has been extremely crucial because oman itself neighbors yemen so it has it has assets it has leverage but it has also concerns if the country if further fragments if the outcome of that would further be a serious security concern for america and our money is basically saying that the military campaign against the in yemen is completely wrong the only way out is to give diplomacy a chance the truth is for example the most powerful player now in yemen massively trust. And most of the time for them to be able to agree to any move forward towards any political settlement. They consult with their own bodies but you know. This is something fall over with take some time because ultimately does not have the resources that other countries but at least their own is with the talk to the International Committee they will say you know what since the arab spring for example we have never taken pass we have never sent troops we have never finance any party and therefore we do really how the legitimacy of being the country the only country in the region that all the evils can trust come to if they seek any political way out of any conflicts in the region thank you for that. Here in the studio with us still ahead on aljazeera with only 4 percent of its waste ever recycled mexicos biggest city introduces a new plastic bag. Hello there is morning winter fog anywhere from the pope valley in italy across the bosphorus but you can see there is climbing elsewhere in fact theres a warning out for the day not a severe one but of strong winds and heavy rain for the British Isles all of which is then heading up towards scandinavia so again most of europe its under these rather benign skies its still not cold and vienna is max is 6 kids up to 4 moscows only just at freezing so as to with temperatures higher than they should be for this time of the year but beyond a bit of slow moving cloud in the old shower its pretty quiet weather even comes agree on sundays less wet and less windy in the British Isles but the denmark what picture prevails out there are showers in the mediterranean and theyre of course coming on land where you might expect into every algeria and tunisia thats what the satellite picture is showing us in the forecast so tension in the low teens in algiers and tunis you see the little blue spots there is a streak of cloud rain across now geria and in libya well its just a little bit of rain otherwise the main stories are fed windy weather is the harm in the seasonal wind across sudan and chad in particular but also nisha and possibly a bit further south. Big store its jenna sounds line maybe a angles in this story are too numerous for comfort with different angles from different perspective just seeing his never really being believe deep for a murder me reward the team separate the speed the from the facts the misinformation from the jug this show it was clear intent to glee and engineer people this than kit with the listening sed on auctions 00 again youre watching aljazeera live from doha a reminder of our top stories after days of denials the ron has that made it its military shot down a ukrainian passenger plane killing all 176. 00 people on board present has on rouhani said it was a unforgivable mistake that he ron deeply regrets 3 days of mourning have been declared in oh mamma to the death of some time kaboul spin sighing be inside outside the 79 year olds died after a long illness hed been credited with modernizing the gulf country so done caboose has cousin heighth them been tarik outside steam here among the mourners has been sworn in as a lance new leader than 8 salt on had no children and never publicly named a success mallon to other world news n. Vote counting has begun in thai wants president ial and parliamentary elections by fictious hear from me counting sation in type paid the vote is seen as a choice between moving closer china all continuing to resist beijings push for reunification opinion poll suggest president sighing wayne whose pro independents is likely to win a 2nd term scott hyder is that a voting station in taipei and has a latest developments the current president is ahead in the polls now if that continues with her ruling taiwan youll probably see a lot more of what weve been seeing over the last year or so that and that is a lot of pressure strong arm tactics from beijing on taiwan theres really not much direct communication from the top in china to the top here in taiwan that has been one of the tactics of chinese president xi jinping youll probably see more military activity you know there have been a lot of navy vessels chinese navy navy vessels that circle around taiwan thats been stepped up over the last several months year well probably see more of that its on when is again elected president but then also itll be interesting to see elsewhere you know one thing that china has been doing over the last several months maybe 2 years up to 2 years and that is going after the nations that recognize taiwan as a sovereign nation. China has been going after those nations and wooing them to their side so those nations that recognize taiwan have been steadily going down we could see that step up as well he rocks caretaker Prime Minister is in the regional capital to discuss the withdrawal of foreign troops. Holding talks of members of the Regional Government at the president ial palace iraqs spawn a man voted last week to expel all Foreign Forces after the assassination of Iranian Military command a custom so money in baghdad. The u. K. s ambassador to the United Nations has warned i new Delivery Program for aid to syria is inadequate it follows a Un Security Council vote to renew operations the number of border crossings involved and the duration of the operations have been hobbs to avoid a veto by russia moscow which backs the syrian governments offensive on edler province had been pushing for every duction in 8. Maltas governing party is voting to choose a new leader to replace Prime MinisterJoseph Muscat he announced his resignation last november over his governments handling of an investigation into the murder of a journalist 17500 maybe Party Members will decide between 2 candidates including deputy premier chris fear the winner is expected to be sworn in as Prime Minister on monday. To mali now where protesters have gathered in the capital bamako demanding the withdrawal of foreign troops they want French Military and United Nations forces to leave the country for failing to stop violence thousands have been killed in the fighting that has spread to neighboring book enough aso and share frances year to host a summit on monday to discuss instability in the west africa region. That mexicos capital has banned the use of plastic bags says the latest in a series of cities around the world trying to cut back on Single Use Plastics algis there is money as a story. To. Residents of mexico city youre looking toward a plastic free future. The city has announced a ban on single use plastic bags the new law is largely seen as an important step to curb back pollution businesses that dont comply with the mandate could face fines or other penalties. Leaders within the Plastic Industry however say the new measure is too extreme and could result in tens of thousands of jobs lost from it but its. The fine is absurd there are serious crimes that one could commit that carry a lesser penalty than having a plastic bag because that back could cost you more than 8800. 00 also the city doesnt even have the infrastructure to enforce this. Plastic manufactures or the only police criticism against the new law. Environmental scientists like the sea authorities rushed the initiative without properly consulting experts as well as important. This is a political decision and dare i say the wrong decision because it is not founded in science or technical ability what i would suggest is that this be studied instead of simply following trends taking place in the rest of the world the 12000000 residents of the mexican capital produce some 13000 metric tons of waste every day. And much of that waste comes in the form of Single Use Plastics which often end up in rivers lakes and the ocean mexico city Officials Say the ban on plastic bags is only a 1st step there are plans to prohibit the sale and distribution of a wide range of a Single Use Plastics by january of 2021. Critics of the legislation say the government lacks the necessary Enforcement Mechanisms to make the initiative successful city officials however say this is a necessary measures one that requires everyones commitment is a but an assault because as we import than that mask is that. Instead of inspecting stores and policing were putting our trust in consumers we believe the primary watchdog for this regulation should be consumers consumers should under no circumstances allow plastics to continue to be distributed. There are exceptions to the rule although the law remains vague on exactly what bags are or are not allowed. The challenge now is the city seeks a future with 0 Plastic Waste will be developing an innovative and sustainable alternative then moved up a little and jersey to mexico city. Again im fully back to bill with the headlines on al jazeera after days of denials see iran has admitted its military shot down a ukrainian passenger plane killing all d 176 people on board president has an rouhani says it was an unforgettable mistake that iran deeply regrets but ukraines president says quote a for admission of guilt and an official apology ourselves a quiet. 3 days of mourning have been declared in oman after the death of some time couples been inside outside the 79 year old died after a long illness had been credited with modernizing the gulf country so tom cabooses cousin hyphen bin tariq outside seen here among mourners has been sworn in as a monster new leader then ate some time had no children and never publicly named a successor a vote counting has begun in taiwans president ial and parliamentary elections election is seen as a choice between moving closer to china or continuing to resist beijings push for green if occasion opinion poll suggests president sighing when who is Pro Independence is likely to win a 2nd term iraqs caretaker Prime Minister is in the Kurdish Regional capital arbil to discuss the withdrawal of foreign troops. Is holding talks with members of the Regional Government at the president ial palace iraq spawn a man voted last week to expel all Foreign Forces after the assassination of Iranian Military commander sort of money in baghdad and the u. K. Some bastard to the United Nations has warned a new Delivery Program for aid to syria is inadequate it follows a Un Security Council vote to renew operations the number of border crossings involved in the duration of the operations have been hard to avoid a veto by russia finally maltas governing parties voting to chose a new leader to replace Prime MinisterJoseph Muscat in ounces resignation last month over his governments handling of an investigation into the murder of a journalist 17500. 00 labor Party Members will decide between 2 candidates including deputy for me a chris fear the winner is expected to be sworn in as fun minister on monday. As always more news on our website at aljazeera dot com ill have more for you in about 30 minutes coming up next. To stay with us. Counting the cost while the u. S. Spends. Military bases across the world plus the reshaping of the Meat Industry as africans swine flu decimate pork industry on the front stage attacks that could escalate. Counting the pulse on aljazeera. States military. Top story for us us all that long strike toxic. I know ive. Got to tell you that that after all the money he was killed in a strike by. Hello im Richard Burton youre at the listening post here are some of the stories were covering this week the u. S. And iran after the assassination the media are playing their part in both countries just not the one they are intended to for anyone concerned about this conflict turning into world war 3 twitter has some handy ideas about how to dog a possible draft india bollywood is giving Prime Minister modi the Cold Shoulder as his government struggles to sell its new citizenship law and fed up by how theyre covered by brazils mainstream news outlets the people in rios favela