Iran (IMNA) - Brigadier General Seyyed Mohammad Bagherzadeh, Commander of the Missing-in-Action Search Committee of the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, said Doha should stop denying the detention of the Iranian airmen and facilitate the entry of Iranian military investigators.
“The Qatari government should allow and facilitate the entry of the Iran Air Force fact-finding team rather than deny the detention of Iranian pilots,” Bagherzadeh said.
He added that an elite team of IRIAF experts has been waiting for months for authorization to enter Qatar, but its efforts have been hindered by the lack of cooperation from Qatari authorities.
The senior commander also stressed that preparations for the safe return of the captured airmen to Iran have repeatedly been delayed by Qatari officials.
The dispute between Tehran and Doha stems from the joint military attack launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on February 28. The attack targeted Tehran and several other Iranian cities and resulted in the martyrdom of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, senior military commanders and thousands of civilians. The strikes also destroyed critical public infrastructure and residential areas across the country.
Iranian Armed Forces, exercising what Tehran described as its legitimate right to self-defense under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, subsequently carried out retaliatory missile and drone operations against Israeli positions and major US forward operating bases across West Asia.
Speaking on August 1 about the operational details, Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia, a spokesman for the Iranian Army, said the retaliatory operation was conducted following the launch of military aggression against Iran on February 28.
Akraminia said the response involved several tactical operations, including a precision mission by F-5 fighter jets against the Al Adiri military facility in Kuwait and a long-range penetration operation by Air Force Su-24 tactical bombers against the key US command hub at Al Udeid in Qatar.
He described the Su-24 operation as one of the most complex and dangerous aerial missions carried out by the Iranian Air Force in recent years, citing the concentration of Western air-defense systems deployed throughout the Persian Gulf.
To evade multilayered radar coverage and early-warning networks, a four-member Iranian strike team conducted the mission at extremely low altitudes, flying approximately 30 to 40 meters above the waters of the Persian Gulf and using terrain features during the landward approach.
Although the primary tactical objectives were achieved and significant damage was inflicted on the targeted base, enemy interceptors engaged the Iranian bombers during their return flight. According to Akraminia, the operation destroyed several American military helicopters on the ground and rendered numerous other rotary-wing aircraft permanently inoperable, significantly reducing forward US air capabilities in the region.
Two Su-24 tactical bombers of the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force had taken off from Shahid Doran Air Base in Shiraz on March 2 to conduct the mission against the military facility in Qatar, which was hosting enemy forces.
After completing their mission, the two aircraft were struck by enemy air-defense batteries while returning over the Persian Gulf.
Of the four crew members, pilot Majid Kazemi was martyred in the incident. After an extended search and recovery effort, his remains were recently recovered and identified through DNA testing. General Kazemi was laid to rest in Shiraz in a funeral attended by military officials and thousands of citizens who paid tribute to his sacrifice.
The three other airmen — Javad Salehi, Abdolmajid Dashtian and Omran Behraveshian — were captured alive by Qatari security forces.
Regarding the three pilots, Akraminia said on August 1 that Tehran had maintained continuous communication with regional authorities, while the Qatari government had so far stated that it had no verifiable information about their whereabouts. He called on Doha to increase cooperation in the search and investigation process in accordance with international humanitarian law and the Geneva Conventions.
In an official letter to Mirjana Spoljaric, President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Bagherzadeh detailed what he described as the secret detention of the three Iranian officers in Qatar for nearly six months.
According to the letter, the Qatari government has denied the captives rights provided under the Third Geneva Convention, including communication with their families, access to diplomatic representation and assessment by neutral humanitarian monitors.
Bagherzadeh called on the ICRC to intervene without delay, visit the detained officers in Qatar, assess their physical and psychological condition and take steps under international legal frameworks to secure their prompt release.
Despite the timeline and evidence presented by the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari rejected Bagherzadeh’s remarks, expressing surprise at Tehran’s statements while diplomatic efforts were underway to reduce regional tensions.
The available operational and diplomatic information points to a strong possibility that the three Iranian pilots remain alive and are being held in custody. The circumstances surrounding their detention also raise questions about the extent of Qatar’s ability to act independently in the case, particularly given the presence and influence of the United States in the region.
Your Comment