Iran Says Three Pilots Missing After Qatar Mission Are Being Held in Qatar

Tehran (Terror Monitor) — Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff has said that three Iranian fighter pilots who went missing after a military mission are being held in Qatar and has asked the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to help clarify their status.

Brigadier General Mohammad Bagherzadeh, head of a committee responsible for tracing missing personnel, made the claim in a letter to ICRC President Mirjana Spoljaric.

According to Iranian media reports, Bagherzadeh said two Iranian Su-24 fighter jets departed on March 2, 2026, for a mission targeting what he described as an “enemy military base” in Qatar.

He said the aircraft came under hostile action while returning from the mission, resulting in four Iranian pilots being affected.

One of the four pilots, Majid Kazemi, was later confirmed dead and his remains were returned to Iran. He was buried in Shiraz on August 29.

Bagherzadeh claimed that the other three pilots — Javad Salehi, Abdolmajid Dashtian and Imran Bahroushian — were captured alive by Qatari forces.

Iranian authorities and state media have previously referred to efforts to determine the whereabouts and status of the three pilots, but no definitive information about their fate had emerged.

Iran Appeals to Red Cross

In his letter, Bagherzadeh accused Qatar of failing to respect the basic rights of the three alleged prisoners despite six months having passed since their disappearance.

He argued that the alleged treatment of the pilots amounted to violations of the Geneva Conventions and other international laws governing the treatment of prisoners of war.

The Iranian general said repeated diplomatic efforts had failed to secure access for the pilots’ families or obtain official information about their condition.

Iran has called on the International Committee of the Red Cross to assist in establishing the whereabouts of the three men and obtaining information about their health and treatment.

Iran’s Claims About the Mission

Iran’s military has previously said the pilots took off from Shahid Doran Air Base in Shiraz as part of a mission targeting a U.S. military facility in Qatar.

Iranian officials claimed that the operation caused “heavy damage” to the U.S. base, but said the Iranian aircraft were attacked while returning from the mission.

The claims regarding the attack, the capture of the three pilots and their alleged detention in Qatar have not been independently verified.

The Iranian appeal comes amid continuing tensions between Tehran and Doha following the wider regional conflict and raises questions over the fate of the three Iranian airmen whose whereabouts have remained disputed.