Iran claims Qatar holds missing pilots; UAE tanker attacked in Strait of Hormuz

Iran on Saturday claimed that Qatar is holding three Iranian pilots who went missing after their aircraft were shot down in March, a claim Doha denied on Sunday.

The developments came as tensions continued across the Middle East, with the United Arab Emirates accusing Iran of attacking an ADNOC-operated vessel in the Strait of Hormuz and Iran-backed Houthi rebels striking a Red Sea port in Yemen.

Iran says Qatar holding missing pilots


Iran's Armed Forces General Staff said Qatar's military had captured and was holding three pilots who disappeared in March after their aircraft were downed. Qatar rejected the allegation.

On Sunday, Mohammad Baqerzadeh, commander of the Committee for the Search for Missing Persons of Iran's Armed Forces General Staff, said Iran's air force and a fact-finding team had been waiting for months to enter Qatar to investigate the fate of the pilots, Iranian media reported.

Baqerzadeh accused Qatari officials of repeatedly delaying the investigation and preventing the pilots' return to Iran. He called on the International Committee of the Red Cross to urgently follow up on the case.

The Iranian statement marked the first time Tehran has publicly said that a regional country was holding its missing military personnel. Iran had previously said it had no information about the pilots' whereabouts.

According to the Iranian statement, Qatar had not allowed the pilots to contact their families or Iranian officials. Tehran also appealed to the president of the International Committee of the Red Cross for assistance.

Iranian state media said the statement also claimed a fourth pilot was killed during a mission targeting a military base in Qatar.

Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al Ansari denied the claims. He said on X that the pilots had been shot down and that Qatari search-and-rescue teams had recovered the remains of one of them. Qatar had invited Iran in April to visit and receive information about the search, but received no response, he said.

UAE says tanker attacked in Strait of Hormuz

An oil tanker owned by Abu Dhabi's state-owned oil and gas company ADNOC was attacked while passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the UAE's state-run WAM news agency reported.

No injuries were reported in the attack. The UAE said it was the third attack on an ADNOC-operated vessel in the waterway in the past week and called on Iran to halt what it described as unprovoked attacks.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre separately said a bulk carrier was hit in its hull by an unidentified projectile on Friday. It was not immediately clear whether the vessel was the same one reported by the UAE.

Iran has asserted control over the Strait of Hormuz since the war began on February 28 with US and Israeli strikes. The waterway had previously carried about one-fifth of global oil and natural gas trade.

Also read: Iran appeals to ICRC over pilots it says Qatar is holding

Israeli strikes kill 11 in southern Lebanon

At least 11 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday, according to Lebanon's Health Ministry and state news agency.

A strike on a house on the outskirts of Ansar killed seven people, including three children, and wounded two others. Another strike in Deir al-Zahrani killed four people and injured 17.

Israel's military said it killed a Hezbollah battalion commander and several other militants at a headquarters in southern Lebanon. It said the strikes came in response to Hezbollah's actions against Israeli troops operating in the area.

Israel also said an explosive drone had seriously wounded three soldiers. The military said the commander's family was present at the site but was not the target, while alleging that he had used family members as human shields.

The strikes were among the deadliest since Israel and the Lebanese government announced a framework for an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon linked to Hezbollah's disarmament. Hezbollah was not part of the agreement and has rejected direct talks.

Houthis strike Red Sea port in Yemen

Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacked the government-controlled Red Sea port of Mokha in Yemen, killing at least three people, including two marines, according to Yemeni officials.

Port director Abdul-Malik al-Sharabi said Friday evening's attack also forced the suspension of port operations. Military spokesperson Col. Majed al-Nazili said the Houthis launched six ballistic missiles.

The attack came amid renewed Houthi strikes on areas controlled by Yemen's internationally recognised government and neighbouring Saudi Arabia, raising concerns over a wider escalation in Yemen.