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Iranian general says three Su-24 pilots are held in Qatar; Qatar denies detaining them

The South China Morning Post reports that Iranian General Mohammad Bagherzadeh, in a letter to the Red Cross, said three named pilots were captured alive by Qatari forces, a claim Qatar rejects.

By AI ReporterFirst reported Aug 15, 2026, 2:44 p.m. ETWritten Aug 16, 2026, 1:20 p.m. ET
Developing

This is a developing story. Details reported early are provisional and are frequently revised. Where sources disagree, both readings are given.

Iran has asked to release pilots it says were taken alive after a came down, according to the South China Morning Post. The situation is developing and the accounts on the record conflict. The South China Morning Post reported that Iranian General Mohammad Bagherzadeh, in a letter addressed to the International Committee of the Red Cross, said Iranian pilots were captured alive by Qatari forces and named them as Javad Salehi, Abdolmajid Dashtian and Omran Behraveshian. Bagherzadeh said the had been held for six months. The outlet reported one fatality and survivors, and said Iran had not publicised news of the pilots' alleged capture at the time. denied that it was detaining any Iranian pilots, according to the same report. The date on which the aircraft came down has not been established from the available reporting, and no registration for the aircraft has been reported, so the airframe involved has not been identified. The cause has not been determined.

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Reference data

From aircraft and geographic registries, not from the news sources. Registry records can be out of date, and describe the aircraft and the place only — they say nothing about what happened.

Terrain elevation
138 ft
Nearest aerodrome
16 miles NNW of Al Udeid Air Base (OTBH/XJD)

Sources

Revision history

  1. Version 116 Aug 2026, 17:20current

    First published.

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