Iraq has reached an agreement allowing Iranian airlines, excluding Mahan Air, to operate 40 flights a day to and from Najaf International Airport, after Baghdad secured a U.S. exemption from sanctions on Iran’s aviation sector.
In a statement on Friday, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi praised “the positive response shown by the U.S. government to Iraq’s efforts and its cooperation in granting the requested exemption.” The statement said Zaidi had sought the resumption of Iranian service to and from the airport, which is located about 100 miles south of Baghdad.
The statement confirms a report published by MBN on Monday that the United States had agreed to exempt Iranian airline activity at Najaf from sanctions. An Iraqi Foreign Ministry source told MBN that the waiver followed a phone call on Sunday between the prime minister and U.S. envoy Tom Barrack during which Zaidi asked for the flights at Najaf to resume.
The four Iraqi airports that receive Iranian flights — Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil and Sulaymaniyah — had halted arrivals from Iran in succession in recent days after U.S. sanctions targeting Iran’s aviation sector were imposed in September.
Najaf was the last of the four airports to close. On the night of Sept. 24, station managers there received an internal message from airport management ordering all flights to and from Iran suspended “until further notice,” citing “official directives issued by the competent authorities” without identifying those authorities or giving a reason.
Najaf airport handles the largest share of air traffic between the two countries. The city, home to the shrine of Imam Ali, is, along with neighboring Karbala, a primary destination for Iranian pilgrims visiting Shiite holy sites. It also receives patients seeking care at local hospitals and private treatment centers, as well as Iraqis traveling to Iran for medical treatment.
Last week, the U.S. Treasury Department threatened to impose sanctions, beginning Sept. 23, on any airport providing services to Iranian airlines. The threat was part of sanctions targeting Iran’s aviation sector under a campaign called “Economic Outcast,” aimed at isolating Tehran financially.
Adapted and translated from the original Arabic.
