Doha, Aug 16 (V7N)- Qatar has rejected claims by an Iranian military commander that three Iranian pilots were detained for months after their aircraft were shot down early in the war.
Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said Doha “completely rejects” the allegations and expressed surprise that such claims were being made while diplomatic efforts are underway to reduce regional tensions, CNN reported.
Al-Ansari said Qatar's search-and-rescue teams had been looking for the remains of the pilots. He added that Doha had contacted Iran to coordinate the transfer of one pilot's remains.
According to the Qatari spokesman, Qatar had invited Iranian authorities in April to provide information about the military operations involved, but received no response.
The denial followed comments by Iranian military commander Seyyed Mohammad Bagherzadeh, who reportedly made the allegations in a letter to the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Iranian media previously reported that Bagherzadeh claimed Qatar had detained three Iranian crew members for several months.
He said two Iranian Su-24 bombers had been shot down after an attack on a US military base in Qatar. According to his account, three Iranian pilots ejected from the aircraft, while one was killed during the fighting.
Qatar has rejected the detention claim and said its personnel were instead involved in efforts to locate and recover the pilots' remains.
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