US Airstrike Damages Iranian Plane at Mashhad Airport

An airstrike attributed to the United States damaged an aircraft operated by Iran's Mahan Air at Mashhad International Airport on Monday, disrupting a planned humanitarian flight to New Delhi, according to Iranian officials. The incident, which occurred amid escalating regional tensions, has drawn sharp condemnation from Tehran as a violation of international law, though Washington has not confirmed the strike.

The aircraft was stationed at the airport and scheduled to depart for India around April 1 to collect essential medical supplies and aid destined for Iranian civilians, Iranian sources stated. The mission was part of broader humanitarian coordination between Iran and India, following New Delhi's dispatch of its first consignment of medical assistance to the Iranian Red Crescent Society on March 18. That shipment underscored longstanding ties between the two nations in supporting Iran's strained healthcare system during ongoing conflicts.

Iran's Civil Aviation Organization strongly denounced the strike, describing it as a war crime. In a statement shared on social media by Iran's embassy in India, the organization said, "The attack on an Iranian aircraft carrying medicines...