TEHRAN – The victims of the Ukrainian plane crash who had Iranian citizenship are considered martyred and their families will be exempted from military service, the law enforcement force’s director for active service, has stated.

A Ukrainian airliner was shot down shortly after taking off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini airport on January 8, killing all 167 passengers and 9 crew members.

Their families can benefit from all the privileges provided for the martyrs in the public service law, IRNA quoted Taqi Mehri as saying on Tuesday.

According to the active service law, all sons of martyrs will be exempted from military service, and if a martyr does not have a son, one of their brothers will be exempted from military service, he noted.

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