All Four Iraqi Airports Suspend Iranian Flights Under New US Aviation Sanctions

Najaf, Erbil and Sulaimaniya joined Baghdad on September 25 in suspending Iranian carrier flights, closing every major Iraqi airport to Iranian airlines. The move enforces new US sanctions, announced to take effect September 23, targeting any company doing business with Iranian airlines in an effort to ground Iran's civilian fleet worldwide; Iran had already cancelled its own Tehran-Baghdad and Tehran-Muscat flights ahead of the deadline. An Iraqi airline employee at Najaf airport told AFP that Iranian carriers normally operated at least 20 daily flights, but only four remained scheduled after the suspension. Iran's Civil Aviation Authority separately ordered all domestic airlines to stop selling tickets for flights to Iraq, and senior Iranian officials threatened retaliation against neighboring countries' airports that cooperate with the US campaign.