Iran Urges Iraq To Lift Flight Restrictions After Najaf Flights Restart

Tehran presses Baghdad

Iran’s Foreign Ministry urged Iraq to lift remaining flight restrictions and fully restore normal air travel between the two countries, even after services partially resumed at one Iraqi airport earlier in the week. Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned Washington’s “illegal and inhumane” efforts to disrupt Iran’s trade and air transport through the “extraterritorial enforcement” of US sanctions, and it urged Baghdad to remove the restrictions. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the movement of millions of Iranian and Iraqi citizens required “an independent and responsible approach” to disagreements between the two governments.

Iraq’s state-run Iraqi News Agency said flights between Najaf and Iran restarted late on Monday, and it credited “diligent efforts” by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi with the resumption. Foreign ground-handling companies refused to provide services for fear of US sanctions, and flights remained suspended at Baghdad, Erbil and Sulaimaniyah airports, forcing passengers onto land journeys of at least 12 hours.

Reporting for this sectionAl Jazeera

US waiver for Najaf

Iraq’s prime minister’s office said the United States approved a waiver allowing Iranian airlines, except Mahan Air, to operate up to 40 flights a day to and from Najaf International Airport.

The Iraqi prime minister’s office said the agreement aimed to facilitate the travel of passengers and pilgrims and to support humanitarian, medical, tourism, and educational flights.

Reuters reported that Iranian airlines excluding Mahan Air were allowed 40 daily flights to and from Iraq’s Najaf international airport following a suspension of flights due to US sanctions.

The Iraqi prime minister’s office said, “The Prime Minister appreciates the positive response shown by the US government to Iraqi efforts and its cooperation in granting the requested exemption,” and it framed the move as an exemption tied to Baghdad’s consultations.

The US Treasury’s temporary license for Iraqi Airways to operate Iran-Najaf services was described as running through Oct. 28 and operating under strict conditions, including restrictions on passengers and cargo.

Reporting for this sectionRock Hill HeraldIran International

Sanctions squeeze air links

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the restrictions on civil air travel between Iran and Iraq created “serious problems for hundreds of thousands of passengers, pilgrims, patients, students and economic actors” and it called the measures contrary to the common interests and welfare of the two countries. Iran’s Foreign Ministry warned that the restrictions were in “clear conflict with the nature of the strategic relations” between Iran and Iraq based on good-neighborly ties. The Iranian Foreign Ministry said the restrictions had already affected large numbers of people on both sides and it described the US measures as a “dangerous plot aimed at undermining friendly relations among countries, particularly neighbours.”

The US ban took effect on September 23 and targeted any company doing business with Iranian airlines, and FlightRadar24 data showed flights to and from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini international airport had fallen 42 percent. The same reporting said routes to Georgia, Oman and Azerbaijan were halted entirely and flights to Dubai were suspended since September 23, while flights to China held steady and the busiest route to Turkiye fell by only 19 percent.

Reporting for this sectionMiddle East OnlineLatest news from Azerbaijan