Iraqi airports suspend Iranian flights following new US aviation sanctions

Four major Iraqi airports, including Baghdad and Najaf, have suspended all flights to and from Iran following sweeping United States secondary aviation sanctions. The measures, which threaten to exclude companies doing business with 27 Iranian airlines from the US dollar system, have also prompted flight cancellations in the UAE, Oman, and Qatar. While Iranian adviser Mohammad Mokhber warned that regional flight access must be free for all or none, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi's office is holding direct talks with Washington to secure humanitarian exemptions for medical and Shia religious travel.

Suspension of flights in Iraq

• ▪Four Iraqi airports, including Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil, and Sulaimaniyah, suspended all flights to and from Iran following new United States aviation sanctions targeting companies doing business with Iranian airlines
• ▪The flight suspensions at Najaf International Airport were enacted following a directive from the Iraqi Prime Minister's office to the governor of Najaf.

Disruption at Najaf airport

• ▪Iranian carriers at Najaf International Airport usually operate at least 20 daily flights, but only four flights remained scheduled on Friday, September 25, 2026.
• ▪The flight suspension between Iran and Iraq severed a key Shia pilgrimage route to Najaf, home to Imam Ali's shrine, forcing an overland journey lasting at least 12 hours.

Iranian response to ban

• ▪The Iranian Civil Aviation Organisation suspended ticket sales to Najaf following the implementation of United States aviation sanctions targeting companies doing business with Iranian airlines
• ▪The Iranian Consulate in Najaf expressed outrage on social media over the closure of Najaf International Airport to flights from Iran, the world's largest Shia-majority country.

Iraqi diplomatic response

• ▪The office of Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi warned that prolonged regional crises would complicate the geopolitical situation and urged all parties to engage in dialogue.
• ▪The Iraqi government is holding direct talks with the United States to secure sanctions exemptions for certain Iraqi airports to allow Iranian flights for humanitarian, medical, educational, and religious purposes.

Implementation of United States sanctions

• ▪United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that global companies continuing to deal with Iranian airlines would be excluded from the United States dollar system.
• ▪The United States implemented aviation sanctions targeting foreign companies doing business with 27 sanctioned Iranian airlines, effective Wednesday, September 23, 2026.

Impact on international routes

• ▪Iranian airlines are relying on a limited number of remaining routes, including Turkiye, Russia, China, and Armenia, to remain operational.
• ▪The United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Georgia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan canceled or restricted flights to and from Iran to enforce United States aviation sanctions targeting companies doing business with Iranian airlines

Iranian warnings to regional countries

• ▪The secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council warned neighboring nations against enforcing the United States flight ban on Iranian airlines.
• ▪Mohammad Mokhber, a senior adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, warned on Friday, September 25, 2026, that if Iran is denied flight access, no regional country will have it either.

Debatable claims

• ▪The US is justified in excluding foreign companies from the dollar system to enforce Iranian aviation sanctions
• ▪Iraq's compliance with US aviation sanctions undermines its national sovereignty
• ▪The US flight ban on Iran disproportionately penalizes Shia pilgrims
• ▪The US should grant Iraq sanctions exemptions for religious and humanitarian flights