TBM Report
Three Iranian air force pilots shot down during an airstrike targeting a US military base in Qatar earlier this year are alive and being held in Qatari custody, Iranian military officials confirmed on Saturday. Tehran has urged the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to intervene to secure their immediate release and facilitate contact with their families.
The revelation came through a letter written by General Mohammad Bagherzadeh, a senior commander in the Iranian Armed Forces, which was published by Fars News Agency on Saturday (August 15).
General Bagherzadeh identified the three detained aviators as Javad Salehi, Abdulmajid Dastian, and Omran Behravesian. He alleged that Qatari authorities have held the pilots in solitary or restricted custody for the past six months, denying them all communication with their families or diplomatic channels.
The incident traces back to last February when Iran launched a retaliatory strike using two Sukhoi-24 fighter jets against the Al-Udeid Air Base in Doha—the largest American military installation in the Middle East—following joint US-Israeli military operations. Both aircraft were shot down during the high-stakes mission.
A total of four aviators were aboard the two jets. In early March, the body of one pilot, Majid Kazemi, was repatriated to Tehran by Qatari authorities, while the fate of the remaining three crew members remained undisclosed until now. This marks the first official confirmation from Iran that the three missing pilots survived the crash and are currently detained in Qatar.
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