ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq said on Saturday that it is in direct talks with the United States to seek exemptions for some Iraqi airports from measures affecting Iranian airlines, a day after flights between Iran and airports across Iraq and the Kurdistan Region were suspended.
The Iraqi government said the exemptions would allow flights to resume for humanitarian purposes, including medical treatment, education, religious visits and other civilian needs.
“In light of the measures taken by the US Treasury Department regarding flights operated by Iranian airlines to airports in countries across the region, including airports in Iraq, the Iraqi government is holding direct talks with the US side to seek exemptions for some Iraqi airports from these measures,” Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi’s media office said in a statement.
The government said it was working to de-escalate tensions in the region, warning that prolonged crises would further complicate the situation.
It called on all sides to pursue dialogue and negotiations to end the current conflicts in a way that serves the interests of regional countries and their populations.
Commercial flights between Iran and Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region, were suspended on Friday as Iraqi airports moved to comply with tightened US sanctions targeting Tehran’s aviation sector.
A source from Iraq’s transportation ministry told Rudaw on Friday that Baghdad was complying with the restrictions and that the suspension would remain in place until the US sanctions were lifted.
The measures followed an announcement by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent earlier in the week declaring what Washington described as a global shutdown of Iranian airlines and warning that entities providing fuel, landing services or tickets could lose access to the US dollar system.
Washington in late August imposed a broad sanctions package against Tehran, dubbed Operation Economic Outcast, before expanding the measures in September to target 36 entities, including 27 active airlines as well as alleged front companies and foreign intermediaries accused of transporting weapons, personnel and illicit cargo.
The restrictions have affected carriers including Mahan Air, Zagros, Qeshm, Caspian and Taban, according to Rudaw’s reporting.
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