(Photo credit: Tyrone Siu/Reuters)
The Cradle
SEP 26, 2026
Iraq is seeking an exemption from the air blockade in order to resume humanitarian flights to Iran.
Flights from Tehran to Turkiye and several Asian countries continue despite US sanctions on Iranian airlines, the CEO of Imam Khomeini International Airport’s operating company announced on 26 September.
Ramin Kashef-Azar told Tasnim News Agency that Iranian flights to Turkiye, China, Malaysia, Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Pakistan are “still operating.”
He added that, beyond the routes already canceled, including those to the UAE, Iraq, and Georgia, no other country has announced new restrictions on Iranian flights.
Kashef-Azar also told Fars News Agency that services to East Asia have seen no cancellations.
Iranian aviation officials are negotiating with the countries concerned to restore the suspended routes, he said. All other arrivals and departures at the Tehran airport are running as normal.
On Saturday, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s office said that the government has asked Washington to exempt some airports from US Treasury sanctions on Iranian airlines.
Zaidi’s office said the exemption would allow flights to Iran to resume for medical treatment, education, religious visits, and other civilian needs.
Najaf International Airport halted all flights to and from Iran from 25 September until further notice, citing directives from the relevant official authorities.
The Iranian consulate in Najaf condemned the closure on X, protesting that the airport serving the shrine of the first Shiite imam had been shut to “the largest Shiite country in the world.”
Erbil and Sulaymaniyah airports had already halted all flights to and from Iran, joining Baghdad International Airport, which had suspended flights earlier
Several Iraqi official bodies and factions condemned the decision to close the country’s airports to Iranian aviation, calling it a mistake, urging the government to reverse it, and insisting that Baghdad must refuse to bow to US dictates.
The closures are part of a wider US campaign to cut Iran off from its remaining trade partners by pushing them to sever banking and aviation ties with Tehran.
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that US Treasury official Jonathan Burke had traveled across West Asia and Europe, threatening governments to choose between trading with Iran and keeping their ties with Washington.
According to WSJ, US officials have contacted more than 50 countries, and the economic strangulation campaign has already led to flight bans, banking restrictions, and deeper isolation for Iran.
Oman and the UAE have banned all Iranian airlines, while Turkiye canceled Mahan Air flights and revoked the license of Bank Mellat, and the UAE barred local branches of Bank Melli Iran from conducting Iran-related transactions.
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