Ukraine official: No theory on cause of crash yet

A Ukrainian passenger jet carrying 176 people crashed on Wednesday, just minutes after taking off from the Iranian capital's main airport, turning farmland on the outskirts of Tehran into fields of flaming debris and killing all on board.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said authorities have not yet ascertained the cause of the crash.

Speaking from Kyiv, foreign ministry official Maksym Kovalenko said a commission has been created to investigate the incident "but there are no hypotheses (of what caused the crash) at the moment."

Kovalenko sent condolences to the families of the victims and said Ukrainian officials were helping with the identification of the bodies.

Ukraine International Airlines said it had indefinitely suspended flights to Tehran after the crash.

The crash of Ukraine International Airlines came hours after Iran launched a ballistic missile attack on Iraqi bases housing US soldiers, but both Ukrainian and Iranian officials said they suspected a mechanical issue brought down the Boeing 737-800 aircraft.