Iran demands answers from Qatar over missing pilots
Iranian Army spokesperson Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia demanded answers from Qatar on Wednesday over three missing Iranian pilots, saying Doha must provide clear information about their fate. Akraminia said Iranian authorities had pursued the issue through diplomatic, legal and military channels, but Qatar maintained it did not know where the pilots were.
Qatar has rejected Iranian claims that it detained the airmen. On August 18, Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majid al-Ansari said rescue teams had recovered the remains of one Iranian pilot and returned them to Tehran. He described allegations that Qatar was holding the other pilots as "completely baseless."
The pilots went missing after Iranian military aircraft entered Qatari airspace on March 2, during the opening days of the war that followed US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.
Akraminia also criticised Washington's approach to the Strait of Hormuz, accusing the United States of lacking a coherent strategy. "These contradictory statements, opinions, and behaviours demonstrate that the Americans lack a coherent strategy," he said, claiming Washington had become "bewildered" in its conflict with Tehran.
His comments came after US President Donald Trump posted a map of the Strait of Hormuz on Truth Social last week labelled "New American Territory." Trump had previously said he intended to declare the strategic waterway American territory, although the White House later said the remarks were a joke and had not been officially discussed.
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