Doha: Qatar denied claims that it had detained Iranian pilots, describing them as misleading amid ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at de-escalating regional tensions.
“We categorically deny the claims circulating regarding the detention of Iranian pilots and are surprised by these misleading statements at this particular time,” Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al Ansari said in a post on social media platform X.
Al Ansari said contact had been established with the pilots concerned after they violated Qatari airspace and authorities confirmed the trajectory of the targeting, Xinhua news agency reported.
“After following the rules of engagement and attempting to communicate with them without receiving a response, the necessary measures were taken to defend our territory in accordance with international law,” he said, adding that the circumstances had been clarified at the time through official channels.
This is the first known case in the war where Iran has said a regional country is holding its fighters. Qatar on March 2 said its air force shot down two Iranian bombers as Tehran lashed out against countries hosting US military bases in the opening days of the war.
Saturday’s statement alleged that Qatar had not allowed the pilots to meet or communicate with families or Iranian officials handling their cases. Iran asked the International Committee of the Red Cross president for help. The letter said a fourth pilot was killed while on the mission “targeting an enemy military base in Qatar,” state media reported.
Al Ansari said Qatari search and rescue teams subsequently conducted operations to search for the remains of the pilots. He added that Qatar had communicated with Iran to coordinate the handover of the remains of one pilot who was found.
An Iranian military commander said Saturday that Qatari forces captured three Iranian pilots whose fighter jets were shot down when returning from a military mission against a US base in Qatar in March. The commander said a fourth pilot was killed.
Tanker attacked in Strait of Hormuz
The tanker owned by Abu Dhabi’s state-owned oil and gas company ADNOC was attacked while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, the Emirati state-run WAM news agency said Saturday.
There were no injuries in the Friday evening attack, the agency reported. It was the third such attack on a vessel operated by ADNOC in the critical waterway in the last week. The United Arab Emirates in a statement called on Iran to stop the unprovoked strikes.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said a bulk carrier was struck in the hull by an unknown projectile on Friday. It was not immediately clear if it was the same vessel.
Iran asserted control over the strait after the war started on February 28 with US and Israeli strikes. About one-fifth of the world’s traded oil and natural gas passed through the waterway at the mouth of the Persian Gulf before then.
Talks between the US and Iran have stalled while Iran is in discussions with Oman about how to manage the strait that runs between them and had been considered an international waterway.
Israeli strikes kill 11 in southern Lebanon
Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 11 people Saturday.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry and state news agency said one strike targeted a home on the edge of the village of Ansar and killed seven people, including three children, and wounded two. The second, on the village of Deir al-Zahrani, killed four and wounded 17.
Israel’s military said it killed a Hezbollah battalion commander and several other militants at a headquarters in southern Lebanon in response to the group’s actions against Israeli soldiers operating there. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in a separate statement said three soldiers were seriously injured. The military blamed an explosive drone.
The military said the commander’s family was with him, and that “it should be emphasised that the family members were not the target of the strike.” Both the military and Netanyahu’s office alleged the commander used the family members as human shields.
It was one of the deadliest days since the Lebanese government and Israel announced a “framework agreement” laying out a plan for Israeli forces to withdraw from southern Lebanon in exchange for Hezbollah’s disarmament.
The militant group refused direct talks and was not part of the agreement.
Houthis in Yemen attack Red Sea port, killing at least 3
Yemen’s military said the Houthis attacked the Red Sea port of Mokha under the control of the internationally recognized government. Port director Abdul-Malik al-Sharabi told journalists that Friday evening’s attack killed three people including two marines, and that port operations had been suspended.
Military spokesperson Col Majed al-Nazili said in a statement that the Houthis fired six ballistic missiles.
The Houthis’ attack was the latest on government-held areas and on neighboring Saudi Arabia, part of an escalation threatening to plunge Yemen back into civil war.
Analysts say the escalation reflects how Iran is scaling up pressure on the United States and its regional allies.
