Iran negotiators were escorted home from talks by Pakistani air force, fearing Israeli hit

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s air force escorted Iranian negotiators home from inconclusive peace talks with the US last weekend, launching a major operation after the Iranians said Israel might seek to kill them, three sources told Reuters.

Pakistan deployed some two dozen jets in the escort, as well as the force’s Airborne Warning and Control System for aerial surveillance to ensure the safety of the delegation back from Islamabad, said two Pakistani sources with knowledge of the operation.

One said similar security protection would be provided for subsequent talks if the Iranians ask for it, “otherwise Pakistani aircraft would receive them in Pakistan airspace.”

A third source involved in the talks said measures were already in the works ahead of an expected further round of talks as soon as this weekend.

A regional diplomat briefed by Tehran, however, said Pakistan insisted on the escort after Iranian delegates raised the “hypothetical” possibility of a threat.

The discussions with the Iranian delegation about a potential threat while traveling and the presence of a Pakistani air escort into Iran have not previously been reported.

Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Iran’s permanent mission in Geneva did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pakistan’s air force and military did not respond to questions about the operation. The US Embassy in Islamabad did not respond to a request for comment.

“When the talks failed, the Iranians were wary that things had not gone right. It was their suspicion that they might be targeted,” one security source said.

“This was a massive operational mission if you look at it from a pilot’s point of view. You are taking responsibility for a delegation that is coming for talks, you are giving them air cover, you have potent fighters that counter any threat,” he said.

The source involved in the talks, the highest-level engagement between the two countries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, confirmed the air escort but did not provide details about the operation.

“We dropped them all the way to Tehran. Their security was our responsibility even beyond their time here,” the source said.

Sunday’s mission to Iran included Chinese-made J-10 aircraft, the top jet in the Pakistani air force fleet, one official said.

The Iranian delegation, led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher ⁠Ghalibaf, a former military officer and certified pilot, requested the security escort, which goes well beyond normal protocol, the two security sources said.

The regional diplomat said the Iranians did not make a formal request but also did not “rule out the possibility that Israel could even strike the aircraft,” prompting Pakistan to insist on providing a security escort.

The delegation did not land in Tehran, the diplomat said, declining to say where they were dropped off.

Israel had Araghchi and Ghalibaf on its strike list until Pakistan asked Washington to intervene to have them removed because there would be no one left to negotiate on the war the US and Israel launched on February 28.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last month: “I wouldn’t issue life insurance policies on any of the leaders of the terrorist organization,” referring to Iran. “I don’t intend ​to provide an exact report here about what we are planning or what we are going ​to do.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.