The Canadian flag at the Parliament Buildings in Victoria will be flown at half-mast to mark the deaths in this plane crash. The 176 were killed when Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 crashed after takeoff near Tehran, Iran.

VICTORIA – BC Premier John Horgan joined Canadians and people around the world in mourning the 176 people, including 63 Canadians, killed in the plane crash (the plane was reportedly shot down in the new hostilities between US and Iran which the US instigated by illegally killing Iran’s top General) near Tehran.

"This morning, British Columbians woke up to the devastating news that 176 people were killed in a plane crash in Iran. We have learned that British Columbians are among the 63 Canadians who were killed.

"Our hearts and thoughts are with the families and friends of loved ones lost and the greater Iranian-Canadian community in B.C. that enriches life in our province.

"As we wait for answers about what happened, we join with nations around the world that are mourning this tragic loss of life. We share in their grief."

The Canadian flag at the Parliament Buildings in Victoria will be flown at half-mast to mark the deaths in this plane crash.

The 176 were killed when Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 crashed after takeoff near Tehran, Iran.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that intelligence from multiple sources indicates that an Iranian missile downed the flight, though it might have been unintentional.

Here is a look at some of the victims with ties to British Columbia:

The president of the Vancouver-based Civic Association of Iranian-Canadians, Kei Esmaeilpour, said a family of three from Coquitlam, B.C., was killed in the crash.

Esmaeilpour told CTV Ardalan Ebnoddin Hamidi, an engineer, and Niloofar Razzaghi, who had just completed university training to become a teacher, lived in the Metro Vancouver city with their 15-year-old son Hamyar Ebnoddin Hamidi.

Esmaeilpour said the family was vacationing in Iran.

He said he worked with Ebnoddin Hamidi and the two had served on the civic association together for at least a decade.

Jessi Eiriksson, 15, said through tears that Kamyar Ebnoddin Hamidi was one of her best friends. Both were in Grade 10 at Riverside Secondary School in Port Coquitlam, B.C.

“He was the most caring person I have ever met. He was always there for me and he would be there for anybody whenever they needed someone to talk to,” she sobbed.

“It's the hardest thing losing him.”

He loved making music and wanted to become a producer when he was older, she said.

She said he also enjoyed playing soccer for fun and they would often kick a ball around together.

“He was shy except he's just such a loving person that everyone loves Kamyar. He makes everyone happy just with his smile and a joke.”

The University of British Columbia said Razzaghi graduated with a bachelor of science in math in 2010 and a bachelor of education in 2018.

A North Vancouver couple in their mid-50s, Firouzeh Madani and Naser Pourshaban were both award-winning physicians in Iran, said their niece Sara Hezarkhani. They were working towards getting their licences to practise in Canada.

“No words can describe their personalities, their true spirit, the passion that they had for the work,” said Hezarkhani.

The couple was in Iran for about two weeks over the holidays to visit family, she said.

Pourshaban and Madani had been living in Canada for about seven years, said Hezarkhani. Their daughter is a university student in the Lower Mainland. She was not on board the flight.

“This is a big loss for our family and it will be very hard to (get) over,” said Hezarkhani.

Delaram Dadashnejad, a 26-year-old Langara College nutrition student in Vancouver, was returning from visiting family and friends in Iran, said her friend Sia Ahmadi.

Dadashnejad was originally booked for a round trip on Lufthansa Airlines, departing Vancouver on Dec. 17 and returning on Jan. 7, but her passport was stuck in Ottawa as part of her student visa renewal application, he said.

She got her passport back the morning of Dec. 18 and rebooked with Ukrainian International Airlines for a trip leaving that day and returning Jan. 8, said Ahmadi, who added he was supposed to pick her up from the airport.

“She was a very loving and compassionate person with a very kind heart, very loyal to her friends, and always tried to help people. Always.”

Dadashnejad planned to become a dietitian because she was passionate about health, said her friend, who added the young woman was an avid yogi and loved spending time outdoors in Vancouver.

He said she's survived by her sister, who lives in Burnaby, B.C., and her mother and father who live in Tehran.

Langara College president Lane Trotter offered condolences in a statement.

“We are heartbroken over the fatal tragedy that took place; our thoughts and prayers are with those in mourning.”

With Files From CTV News