Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday, July 20, that it had subpoenaed the Argentine chargé d’affaires to demand the “immediate” lifting of the travel ban on five Iranian crew members of a plane that has been held in Argentina for a month and a half.
Confiscation of personal devices
The Boeing 747 freighter that arrived in Argentina from Mexico and owned by the Venezuelan company Emstrasur in the past by the Iranian company Mahan Air has been immobilized at Ezeiza Airport in Buenos Aires since June 8 after unsuccessfully trying to fly to Uruguay .
Its crew, five Iranians and 14 Venezuelans, are not allowed to leave Argentina while the judicial system, which has seized several mobile phones and computers, investigates their profile, particularly a possible link to the Revolutionary Guards, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s ideological army.
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The Iranian Foreign Ministry told the Argentine diplomat “the serious concern of the Iranian government and the families of the Iranian crew about the confiscation of their travel documents and the restrictions imposed on them when leaving the country, which is a violation of people’s rights,” it said he in a statement. “Iran calls on the Argentine government to fulfill its duties and responsibilities by lifting restrictions and facilitating the immediate departure of the five Iranian crew members,” the text adds.
The aircraft’s status is ‘completely legal’
The plane, owned by Emtrasur, a subsidiary of Venezuelan company Conviasa and subject to US sanctions, was en route to Montevideo when it was denied entry. According to Iranian officials, Conviasa bought the plane from Mahar Air last year.
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The United States accuses Mahan Air of links to the Revolutionary Guards, which Washington has classified as a terrorist organization. “The status of the Venezuelan aircraft and its Iranian crew members is fully legal under international law and aviation agreements, and there is no complaint against Iranian citizens in this regard,” he added, Iran’s foreign ministry said.
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