WANA (Apr 29) – Contrary to claims circulated by opposition media, Russian firefighting aircraft were used only in the final mop-up phase after the main blaze at Shahid Rajaee Port had been fully extinguished by Iranian forces.

 

Late Monday night, following the successful suppression of the main fire, firefighting aircraft from the IRGC Aerospace Force and several emergency personnel returned to Tehran on orders from Iran’s National Crisis Management Headquarters. With only residual fire patches remaining, Russian water-dropping aircraft were deployed for final containment.

 

The main fire had been brought under full control through coordinated efforts involving Iranian firefighters, helicopters, and firefighting planes from the IRGC Navy and Aerospace Force. No foreign assistance was used during the primary operations.

 

Iranian Interior Minister stated in a Monday interview (April 28) that Russian planes had not yet been deployed but could be utilized if needed.

 

This morning (Tuesday, April 29), Saeed Sajedi-Nia, head of Iran’s Crisis Management Organization, confirmed in a radio interview that Russian aircraft were used briefly for mop-up purposes.

 

After the main fire was put out, around 6:30 a.m. today, Russian planes dropped their 130-ton load of fire retardant on remaining hotspots before preparing to return to Russia.

 

Opposition media outlets attempted to exploit the post-operation involvement of Russian aircraft to suggest contradictions in earlier statements by Iranian officials, misleading the public by omitting the timeline and context of events.

 

The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations had dispatched aircraft two days earlier, responding to a request by Iran’s crisis authorities and an order from the Russian president. Due to the effectiveness of Iranian operations, their assistance was not needed during the main phase.

 

With the operation concluded and the need to unload cargo before departure, the Russian aircraft released their fire suppressant over the residual fire zones. The planes then rinsed their tanks using water from the Persian Gulf and are expected to return to Russia within hours.