Pakistan Shelters Iranian Military Planes at Nur Khan Base After Trump Ceasefire, US Officials Say

Washington — Pakistan quietly allowed Iranian military aircraft to park on its airfields as it positioned itself as a diplomatic conduit between Tehran and Washington, potentially shielding the planes from American airstrikes, according to U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter.

Iran sent civilian aircraft to park in neighboring Afghanistan. Two of the officials told CBS News it was not clear if military aircraft were among those flights.

The movements showed an effort to protect some of Iran's remaining military and aviation assets from the expanding conflict. Officials publicly acted as brokers for de-escalation.

The U.S. officials spoke to CBS News only on condition of anonymity to discuss national security issues. They said that days after President Trump announced the ceasefire with Iran in early April, Tehran sent multiple aircraft to Pakistan Air Force Base Nur Khan, a key military installation just outside the Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi.

Among the aircraft was an Iranian Air Force RC-130, a reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering variant of the Lockheed C-130 Hercules tactical transport.

U.S. Central Command referred CBS News to Afghan and Pakistani officials for comment.

A senior Pakistan official rejected the claims about Nur Khan Air Base. He told CBS News, "Nur Khan base is right in the heart of [the] city, a large fleet of aircrafts parked there can't be hidden from [the] public eye."

An Afghan civil aviation officer who spoke to CBS News said an Iranian civilian aircraft belonging to Mahan Air landed in Kabul shortly before the war started. After Iranian airspace closed, the aircraft stayed parked at Kabul airport.

Later, when Pakistan began airstrikes on Kabul in March during tensions with the Taliban-led government over allegations that the Afghan Taliban offered safe haven to the jihadist group Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, Taliban civil aviation authorities moved the aircraft to Herat Airport near the Iranian border. They did so for safety, to protect it from possible bombing of Kabul Airport by Pakistani jets.

The aviation officer said this was the only Iranian aircraft left in Afghanistan.

Taliban's chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied any Iranian airplanes in Afghanistan. He told CBS News, "No, that's not true and Iran doesn't need to do that."

Pakistan's reliance on China for military assistance has risen sharply over the past decade. A Stockholm International Peace Research Institute study showed China supplied about 80 percent of Pakistan's major arms between 2020 and 2024. Islamabad also maintains close economic ties with Beijing.

Islamabad has tried to work both sides of the crisis, presenting itself to Washington as a stabilizing intermediary while avoiding steps that could alienate Tehran or China, Iran's most powerful international backer.

China has deepened military and economic cooperation with both Pakistan and Iran in recent years. It publicly celebrated Pakistan's role in facilitating indirect communications between Tehran and Washington.

Iran's latest proposal to end the war included demands for U.S. war reparations, recognition of Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and removal of American sanctions, according to Iran's state-run broadcaster.

Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting disclosed the conditions in a social media post a day after Mr. Trump publicly rejected Tehran's counteroffer as "TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE." The president did not specify which elements prompted his rejection.

The rejection has strained what amounts to a ceasefire in name only. Mr. Trump prepares to travel to Beijing this week for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, where the war in Iran is expected to feature alongside disputes over trade and Taiwan.

Small-scale clashes continued around the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday.