Iraq Suspends All Flights to and from Iran Over US Sanctions
Iraq has halted reciprocal air travel with Iran. An official at Iraq's Ministry of Transport said the decision followed Washington's expansion of sanctions on Iran's aviation sector, and that the suspension will remain in place as long as the sanctions do.
RastinewsAn official at Iraq's Ministry of Transport said all reciprocal flights between Iraq and Iran have been suspended as of today.
The official said flights from Iran to Iraq and from Iraq to Iran have been halted. Most flights arriving from Iran had been landing at Baghdad and Najaf airports.
According to the official, flights to Najaf, the last airport still handling Iranian routes, were also stopped as of today.
"Not Iraq's decision alone"
The ministry official said the decision was not made solely at Baghdad's discretion, but was implemented in line with international regulations.
"We are bound by instructions. This is not a matter within Iraq's authority alone — it is an international decision. The suspension will continue until the sanctions are lifted," the official said.
The statement was made by the ministry official in remarks to Rûdaw.
Third-country firms also targeted
The US Treasury Department announced on September 8 that it had added 27 airlines operating in Iran's aviation sector to its sanctions list. Washington said the decision, which covers all of Iran's remaining airlines, would also expose third-country companies providing services to those airlines to sanctions risk.
Pressure has since mounted on companies supplying fuel, ground handling and ticketing services to Iranian airlines. Some private ground-handling firms in Iraq were reported to have stopped servicing Iranian airlines over sanctions concerns.