Published images of Russian planes in Mehrabad and Tom Tugendhat's warning in the British Parliament

Referring to the Iranian national uprising and the published images of Russian planes in Mehrabad, Tom Tugendhat asked the State Department to explain security movements and reports related to the preparation of Iranian sovereignty.

Tom Tugendhat, a member of the House of Commons and former British Minister of Security, asked the British Foreign Secretary to explain the presence of Russian planes at Tehran's Mehrabad Airport in a session of the country's parliament, calling it part of security developments related to the Iranian national uprising and concerns about "the ayatollahs preparing to fight and flee."

Tugendhat said in this regard: "We are seeing Russian cargo planes arriving in Tehran and are shaping the security and operational environment."

The British representative's statement has also received a reaction and attention from social media users, as in the last two days, videos and photos from Mehrabad Airport have been published on various platforms that claim to show planes of Russian origin. This content, along with Tugendhat's statements, has caused the issue to go beyond a political claim and be reflected in cyberspace.

Some of these videos and images attempt to show that giant transport planes or Russian-designed jets have been seen on the runways of Mehrabad. Although independent confirmation of the identity of these planes and their direct connection to Russian military forces is still unclear and more detailed analysis is needed, a call from Ramin Azar, the executive director and head of the Imam Khomeini Airport City Company, and his statements on the matter have drawn public attention to the veracity of this news.

In a call whose destination is protected, he stated: "The published photo was published due to a security negligence by the airport's information security team, because the employee in question was on leave at the time of the security briefing on January 14, and the head of the information security team does not issue a new security briefing for this category after the employees return from leave. Therefore, the employee in question, who has been serving in the airport's transportation department with 13 years of experience, notices the unusual presence of a Russian TU-324 private jet on runway 29 of Mehrabad Airport on January 15, which attracts his attention and he takes a photo and posts it in the Telegram group as an interesting phenomenon.

A Russian foreign flight security official protested in a letter to our country's Foreign Ministry that: "At the urgent request of Iranian authorities on January 2, 2026, we sent this private jet for the emergency evacuation of senior officials in special circumstances, and there was an agreement that this flight would be confidential. Now, in a letter to the said official, the Foreign Ministry has apologized and emphasized that the perpetrators will be dealt with."

Tugendhat also referred to reports after the news was published, saying: "Resources and assets, including money and gold, are being withdrawn from Iran, which indicates that the Islamic Republic has planned for survival in the next stage."

On the other hand, it is important to emphasize that in the past, videos or images attributed to the presence of Russian fighter jets such as the Su-35 in Tehran have also been published on social media, but fact-checking centers have warned that some of these videos were fake or unreliable, and no official confirmation of the presence of such fighter jets in Iran has been provided.

Overall, Tom Tugendhat's statements, along with visual content published on social media, have led to a more serious discussion about the possible presence of Russian-linked aircraft at Mehrabad Airport and their role in Iran's security developments, including the escape of Ali Khamenei.