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International Desk AMENDMENT TO STORY: FOLLOWING "OFFICIAL" IRANIAN REPORTS THE FOLLOWING STORY HAS BEEN CONFIRMED TO HAVE BEEN A HUNGARIAN JET NOT AN AMERICAN The New York Times has run the following story from reports via Al Alam an Iranian news channel It has been confirmed that the Iranian Air Force has "forced" a US Falcon to land after a US jet violated Iran's airspace.
The Fars News agency of Iran has stated:
"Iranian fighter FNA dispatches said that the US Falcon jet had entered Iranian airspace from Turkey despite repeated warnings by the Islamic Republic Air Force. The US jet was flying at low altitude in a bid to remain unnoticed by Iranian Radars, but it was made to touch down at an Iranian air port escorted by Air Force fighter jets.The flying crew and passengers, including five US militaries and three civilians, were released after day long interrogations revealed that they had violated Iranian airspace unintentionally as they were en route to Afghanistan.The US Falcon and all those aboard left Iran for Afghanistan after receiving take off permission from Iranian authorities." Iranian state television have issued a report that contradicts this statement by FARS saying that the plane was not American but the crew was American. Read recent reports US forces have been active in operations in nearby Afghanistan and it is conceivable some jets flew into Iranian airspace. The revelation that a US aircraft has been "downed" will only add to the tensions in the region and reports that Israel was ready to "hit" Iran following the breakdown in talks with the IAEA to agree a solution with Iran to scrap its intentions to have a nuclear programme. Previous London Daily News reports on the issue: US and Israel prepare for Iran attack 11 April 2008
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