Pakistan, which is playing mediator to end the US-Iran war, quietly allowed Iranian military aircraft to park on its airfields to shield them from American airstrikes, CBS News reported, quoting US officials.ย The report also claimed that Iran also sent its civilian aircraft to park in neighboring Afghanistan.
Iran sent multiple aircraft to Pakistan’s Nur Khan Air Base
US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that days after US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire in early April, Iran sent “multiple aircraft” to Nur Khan Air Base. The reported military hardware allegedly included an Iranian Air Force RC-130 reconnaissance aircraft, an intelligence-gathering variant of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules.
A senior Pakistan official rejected the claims involving Nur Khan Air Base, and told CBS News, that “Nur Khan base is right in the heart of (the) city, a large fleet of aircraft parked there can’t be hidden from (the) public eye”.
An Afghan civil aviation officer told CBS News that an Iranian civilian aircraft operated by Mahan Air had landed in Kabul shortly before the conflict began.
However, Zabihullah Mujahid, chief spokesperson of the Taliban, denied the presence of any Iranian aircraft in Afghanistan and told CBS News, “No, that’s not true and Iran doesnโt need to do that.”
US Senatorย questions Islamabad’s role
Reacting to the report, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham called for a complete re-evaluation of Pakistan’s role as a mediator to end the US-Iran war that broke out on February 28 and has been put on pause since April 8.
“If this reporting is accurate, it would require a complete reevaluation of the role Pakistan is playing as mediator between Iran, the United States and other parties,” Graham, the Senator from South Carolina, said in a post on X.
“Given some of the prior statements by Pakistani defense officials towards Israel, I would not be shocked if this were true,” Graham said.
Islamabad has attempted to navigate both sides of the crisis โ presenting itself to Washington as a stabilizing intermediary while avoiding steps that could alienate Tehran or China, Iran’s most powerful international backer, the CBS News report said.
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