Two US fighter jets approached an Iranian airliner on Thursday, forcing its pilot to quickly change altitude and injuring passengers, Iranian state media reported.
Images filmed by an Iranian state television reporter on board the flight allegedly captured the commotion inside the plane. It shows a man with a bloody face and another lying motionless on the floor of the plane. At least one passenger was photographed in his inflated yellow life vest apparently preparing for a crash landing.
The pilot of the airliner, which the semi-official news agency Farsnews said was flying from Tehran to Beirut, told state television IRINN that the pilots of two fighter jets that approached his plane had presented themselves as Americans.
Meanwhile, Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for the United States Central Command, said in a statement that a US fighter jet carried out a visual inspection of the airline at a “safe distance.”
It was not immediately clear why Iranian state media reported that two fighter jets approached the passenger plane, but the United States said a single F-15 conducted the inspection. NBC News was unable to immediately verify any of the accounts.
Previously, the Iranian state media had reported that the fighter jets were Israeli. An Israeli army spokesman said he was not commenting on any foreign reports on this incident.
The U.S. Army Central Command, which oversees U.S. troops in the region, said the F-15 aircraft was conducting a visual inspection of the Iranian aircraft at approximately 1,000 meters (about 1,094 yards) when it passed near the Tanf garrison in Syria, where the coalition forces are present.
“Once the F-15 pilot identified the plane as a Mahan Air passenger jet, the F-15 safely opened the distance to the plane,” said Urban, a spokesman for the United States Central Command. “The professional interception was carried out in accordance with international standards.”
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The incident, about which details remain sparse, could further escalate tensions between the two countries, which have worsened dramatically since President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018.
On January 3, the United States killed Qassem Soleimani an Iranian general in a drone attack that later led Tehran to launch ballistic missiles at US forces in Iraq.
Last year, the US Marines blocked an Iranian drone in the Strait of Hormuz, shooting down the plane and destroying it.
Thursday’s incident recalls the July 3 shootdown of Iran Air Flight 655 by the US Navy. The Iranian government often points to that event as one of many incidents that have caused the decades-long gap between Washington and Tehran.
After the meeting, an adviser to Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani, Hesamodin Ashna, tweeted what appeared to be a veiled threat against the United States.
“Whoever cares about the lives of their leaders does not play with the lives of our passengers,” he said.
Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement that the incident was under investigation.
He added that a protest note was sent to the Swiss Embassy, which represents the interests of the United States in Iran, warning that if an accident occurred on the plane’s return flight to Tehran, it would be the responsibility of the United States.
The plane landed in Beirut before returning to Tehran, where it landed around 3 am local time on Friday (6.30 pm Thursday ET), according to Iranian state media.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
Courtney Kube contributed
