Doha says Iranian aircraft violated its airspace in March and failed to respond to warnings; Tehran asks Red Cross to help secure release of three airmen it says survived
Shahziab Saqib I SCN NEWS
DOHA — Qatar on Saturday categorically denied holding three Iranian military pilots whom Tehran says were captured alive after their fighter jets were brought down over the Gulf state during the war earlier this year, opening a new dispute between the two neighbours months after the incident.
Iranian authorities said three pilots flying two Su-24 fighter aircraft were captured by Qatari forces after the jets went down during fighting in March and called on the International Committee of the Red Cross to intervene to secure their release.
Qatar rejected that account.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said Iranian military aircraft had violated Qatari airspace on March 2 without prior coordination and had failed to respond to repeated attempts to contact them.
“Necessary measures” were then taken to defend Qatari territory, according to Doha's account.
Qatar said subsequent search-and-rescue operations found the remains of one Iranian pilot, which Doha has sought to return to Iran. It said no other pilots were found and denied that any Iranian aircrew were being secretly detained.
The conflicting accounts leave unresolved what happened to the remaining crew members of the Iranian aircraft and could complicate relations between Tehran and Doha at a time when Qatar has sought to navigate the wider regional conflict while maintaining contacts with Iran and the United States.
Iran made the allegation publicly on Saturday through General Mohammad Bagherzadeh, head of the Missing Persons Search Committee of Iran's Armed Forces General Staff.
In a letter to ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, Bagherzadeh said four Iranian pilots had been aboard two Su-24 aircraft during the March incident.
He said three pilots were captured alive by Qatari forces, while another pilot was killed, and urged the Red Cross to intervene over the fate of the three men.
Iranian media carried the demand for their release, marking the first time Tehran had publicly alleged that neighbouring Qatar was holding Iranian military personnel from the conflict.
Doha's response directly contradicted the Iranian account.
Al-Ansari said Qatar had already contacted Iranian authorities and offered to provide a detailed briefing on the incident and the operational measures taken after the aircraft entered Qatari airspace.
Qatar also said it had sought coordination with Tehran for the transfer of the remains recovered during the search operation but had not received a response.
The Foreign Ministry described claims that Qatar was holding Iranian pilots as misleading and said Doha remained willing to share information about the incident with Iranian authorities.
The dispute dates to the opening days of the wider Middle East war, when Iranian aircraft, missiles and drones threatened several Gulf states as the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Tehran expanded across the region.
Qatar hosts Al Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. military facility in the Middle East and a major command centre for American military operations in the region, giving the Gulf state particular strategic importance during the conflict.
Despite its close security relationship with Washington, Qatar has also maintained diplomatic relations with Iran and has frequently served as an intermediary in regional disputes.
The public accusation from Tehran therefore creates an unusual confrontation between governments that have generally sought to keep communication channels open even during periods of heightened regional tension.
Neither side's full account of the March incident could be independently verified.
Iran maintains that three of its pilots survived and were taken into Qatari custody.
Qatar maintains that it is holding no Iranian pilots, that only one pilot's remains were recovered and that it has offered Tehran information about what occurred.
The disagreement now places the fate of the missing Iranian aircrew at the centre of a diplomatic dispute, with Tehran seeking international involvement and Doha publicly rejecting an allegation that, if substantiated, would mean Iranian military personnel had been held for months without acknowledgement.