Mashhad, Iran: US airstrike reportedly hit a Mahan Air aircraft at Mashhad International Airport, scuttling a vital humanitarian flight to New Delhi, Iranian sources said
The plane, stocked with medicines and medical gear from various nations, was due to depart soon to ferry aid from India back to Iran — as part of a broader relief operation amid escalating regional strife.
“Mahan Air aircraft was hit by the US in an airstrike at Mashhad Airport. The plane was scheduled to fly to Delhi for humanitarian aid,” the sources said, as quoted by ANI.
The US has offered no comment on the reported incident.
The airstrike jeopardizes expanding India-Iran humanitarian collaboration, grounded in deep civilizational connections. Just weeks ago, New Delhi delivered several aid packages to Tehran, reinforcing shared dedication to relief work against international headwinds.
Iran’s Civil Aviation Organisation fired back, calling it a “war crime” and outright defiance of international law. In a statement shared by Iran’s mission in India on X, it stressed the plane’s role in a humanitarian mission carrying medicines and equipment sourced globally.
Such targeting marks a “blatant violation” of aviation standards and humanitarian tenets, the body asserted.
It cited the Chicago Convention (1944) and Montreal Convention (1971), framing civilian aircraft threats as international offences, plus Article 52 of Additional Protocol I to the Geneva Conventions—deeming attacks on aid planes potential war crimes.
The organisation pressed world bodies to “urgently investigate the incident, prosecute those responsible and ensure safeguards to prevent similar threats to civil aviation.”
Mahan Air, Iran’s top private airline, has faced US sanctions for years. The US alleges IRGC connections and shipments of personnel and equipment for regional conflicts — a charge Tehran has consistently denied.
