Iran says it will use all diplomatic and legal channels to determine the fate of three Air Force pilots it believes are being held in Qatar after their fighter jets were downed during the March war.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that it will use all “bilateral, multilateral and legal capacities” at its disposal to determine the status of three missing Air Force pilots believed to be in Qatari captivity, as Tehran presses Doha for answers over their fate.
“Iran's serious demand from Qatar is to clarify the status of these pilots. We will use all bilateral, multilateral, and legal capacities to pursue their fate,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said at a weekly press briefing.
He added that Iran was in contact with Qatari officials in Doha and Qatar’s embassy in Tehran over the fate of the missing Air Force pilots, whose fighter jets were downed in the first days of the Israel-U.S. war against Iran in March.
“From the very first days, following up on the fate of the four pilots was on our agenda. These pilots were on a defensive mission to strike at the bases that were the source and origin of the US aggression against Iran,” he added after one of the pilots was confirmed dead.
According to General Mohammad Bagherzadeh, commander of the Missing Persons Search Committee of the General Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces, four Iranian pilots flying two Su-24 Fencer fighter jets were hit by air defence while returning from a military mission on 2 March.
Bagherzadeh said three of the pilots were captured by Qatar, while the fourth was killed by “enemy” fire.
Baghaei also strongly criticised Islamic states in the region for allowing their territory and airspace to be used by the U.S. military to attack a Muslim nation during the fasting month of Ramadan, but he did not name any country.
Asked about the 60-day ceasefire agreement between Iran and the U.S., which expired on Monday, Baghaei said the deal, known as the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, had become “moot” because talks never took place following what Tehran described as U.S. violations from the first days after it was signed on 17 June by the presidents of Iran and the U.S.
“What was stated in the memorandum, the implementation status of which is currently completely unclear and inactive due to the gross violations by the US, had foreseen that discussions would be held over a period of 60 days on the two issues of lifting sanctions and the nuclear issue and that if we did not reach a conclusion within these 60 days, it would be extended.”
Baghaei said the negotiations never began because the U.S. committed what he described as “gross and widespread violations” of its provisions just a few weeks after the agreement was signed.
“Therefore, the 60-day issue is basically no longer relevant.”
“It has been proven time and again that Iran is not a party that adjusts its policies under pressure, ultimatums, and deadlines. We make decisions based on national interests and our assessments of what provides and guarantees national interests and security,” the spokesman told reporters.
Asked why Iran and Oman had not announced an agreement on managing traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, Baghaei confirmed that the two countries had agreed on a navigation route through the waterway and were working on the provisions of a joint statement.
“Talks between Iran and Oman are continuing in earnest,” he replied.
“Views are being exchanged on the text of the joint statement, and both sides have so far shown that they are determined to develop a mechanism that meets the interests and concerns of both sides while also meeting considerations related to international shipping,” Baghaei said.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday that the United States must recognise that the “rules of the game” i...
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has left for France for a four-day visit aimed at strengthening ties with Paris, including a summit with Frenc...
Adidas is facing calls for a boycott after featuring former Israeli soldier Shalev Biton in a campaign for its Single Shoe Service, as critics ques...
An eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Anak Krakatau has disrupted air travel, school activities and fishing operations, with hundreds of passengers stranded at Jakarta’s main airport on Sunday.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Sunday that the United States must recognise that the “rules of the game” in its war against Iran had changed “before it is too late”, a day after Washington struck several Iranian tankers in the Gulf.
U.S. negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have arrived in Moscow for peace talks on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, two people familiar with the matter said. They were met by Russian Presidential Envoy Kirill Dmitriev.
Two Greek military pilots were killed on Saturday when an F-4 Phantom fighter jet crashed during an air show at Tanagra air base, north of Athens, officials said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin held more than three hours of talks with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Moscow on efforts to end the Ukraine war.
Israeli strikes killed four people, including two women, in southern Lebanon on Sunday, the Lebanese Health Ministry said, as Israel said it was retaliating for two Hezbollah drone attacks targeting its soldiers.
A unique architectural monument dating back to the 9th to 12th centuries has been discovered in the village of Gargara, in the Korez village commune in Dangara district in Tajikistan.
Japan and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime have launched a $9.4 million, two-year project across five Afghan provinces to help former poppy-growing families and expand drug prevention and treatment services.
For centuries, Lahore has been shaped by the people, cultures and empires that passed through it. Now, the Pakistani city is preparing to put that rich history before a wider regional audience.
Israel is ready to move Palestinians from Gaza as soon as the U.S. approves, the country’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has said. He told a conference hosted by Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth on Wednesday that there was “no real solution” for Gaza without migration.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment