Click to see full-size image. (Mehr News Agency)
Pakistan has been providing a safe haven for Iranian warplanes, even as it acted as a mediator between the Islamic Republic and the United States in an attempt to reach a permanent ceasefire, CBS News reported on May 10, citing American officials.
Two of the officials also revealed to the news channel that the Islamic Republic sent civilian aircraft to park in neighboring Afghanistan.
According to the officials, days after President Trump announced the ceasefire with Iran last month, the Islamic Republic sent multiple warplanes to Pakistan Air Force Base Nur Khan, a strategically important military installation located just outside the Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi.
Among the military hardware was an RC-130, a reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering variant of the American-made C-130 Hercules tactical transport aircraft.
A senior Pakistan official, however, rejected the claims involving Nur Khan Air Base, telling CBS News, that “Nur Khan base is right in the heart of [the] city, a large fleet of aircrafts parked there can’t be hidden from [the] public eye.”
Meanwhile, an Afghan civil aviation officer told the channel that an Iranian civilian aircraft belonging to Mahan Air landed in Kabul shortly before the start of the American-Israeli war on the Islamic Republic. After Iranian airspace was closed, the aircraft remained parked in Kabul International Airport.
Later, when Pakistan began airstrikes on Kabul in March during tensions with the Taliban-led government, the Afghan civil aviation authorities decided to move the aircraft to Herat Airport near the Iranian border for safety reasons, to protect it. This was the only Iranian aircraft left in Afghanistan.
Taliban’s chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied the presence of any Iranian airplanes in Afghanistan, telling CBS News, “No, that’s not true and Iran doesn’t need to do that.”
CBS News’ report is not surprising. Pakistan’s close ties with Iran are the reason why the country is not leading mediation efforts to end the war.
The close coordination between the two countries was on full display after the start of the war, with the Islamic Republic allowing multiple ships heading to Pakistani ports to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, even at times when the waterway was very much closed.
The latest report may be meant to put some pressure on Pakistan, especially that it came out fight after Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal. It may be another sign that war will resume soon.
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