The Iranian Embassy in the German capital of Berlin confirmed on Wednesday that Milad Hojjatoleslami, a sports correspondent with Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, and Hossein Javadi, a reporter with Vatan-e-Emrooz Persian-language daily newspaper, were among the victims of the aviation disaster.
On Tuesday evening, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani expressed deep sorrow over the tragic event, and offered Tehran’s deepest sympathy to the families of all the victims.
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Marziyeh Afkham also extended Iran’s condolences to Germany and the families of those hit by the calamity.
An Airbus A320 passenger aircraft, operated by Germanwings, a low-cost subsidiary of Germany's flag-bearer, Lufthansa, disappeared off the radar at about 10.30 a.m. GMT on Tuesday, while just under half way on its route from the Spanish city of Barcelona to Dusseldorf in Germany.
A few hours after the incident, Germanwings CEO Thomas Winkelmann said there were 144 passengers and six crew members on the aircraft.
Investigators say the plane was travelling at a speed of more than 430 meters per hour, when it smashed into the mountain, shattering into small pieces of wreckage. All of the people on board the plane are feared dead.
Investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing. One of the aircraft's black boxes has been found and the search is continuing for the other one.
