Iran urges Iraq to lift flight ban amid US sanctions

Iran calls on Iraq to remove flight curbs linked to US sanctions, emphasising the need for restored air travel.

Protesters gather outside Najaf international airport to protest US restrictions targeting Iranian aviation activities and their impact on flights between Iran and Iraq, in Najaf, Iraq, on September 28, 2026 [Alaa Al-Marjani/Reuters]

Iran called on Iraq to lift remaining flight restrictions caused by US sanctions and fully restore normal air travel between the two countries, even after services partially resumed at one Iraqi airport earlier in the week.

In a statement on Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned Washington’s “illegal and inhumane” efforts to disrupt Iran’s trade and air transport through the “extraterritorial enforcement” of US sanctions, and urged Baghdad to remove the restrictions.

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It said the movement of millions of Iranian and Iraqi citizens required “an independent and responsible approach” to disagreements between the two governments.

Flights between Najaf and Iran had restarted late on Monday , according to the country’s state-run Iraqi News Agency, which credited “diligent efforts” by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi with the resumption.

Iraq’s ambassador to Iran, Yasser Abdulzahra al-Hajjaj, said Baghdad had not decided to suspend Iranian flights.

Foreign ground-handling companies refused to provide services for fear of US sanctions.

Flights remained suspended at Baghdad, Erbil and Sulaimaniyah airports, forcing passengers onto land journeys of at least 12 hours and disrupting pilgrim traffic between the Shia-majority areas.

The suspensions prompted protests across Iraq, including outside Najaf airport and in Nasiriya, Karbala and Amarah, according to the Iranian news agency Press TV.

The US ban, which took effect on September 23 and targets any company doing business with Iranian airlines, has sharply cut Iran’s international air links.

Flights to and from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini international airport have fallen 42 percent, according to aviation monitor FlightRadar24, with routes to Georgia, Oman and Azerbaijan halted entirely and flights to Dubai suspended since September 23.

Flights to China have held steady, while the busiest route, to Turkiye, has fallen by only 19 percent, even as individual airlines have shifted service on and off the route.

Iraq’s government had sought a US exemption “on humanitarian grounds related to medical treatment, education, religious visits, and the interests of civilians”.

伊朗呼吁伊拉克取消与美国制裁相关的航班限制，强调恢复航空旅行的必要性。

2026年9月28日，在伊拉克纳杰夫，抗议者聚集在纳杰夫国际机场外，抗议美国针对伊朗航空活动的限制及其对伊朗和伊拉克之间航班的影响。[Alaa Al-Marjani/路透社]

伊朗呼吁伊拉克解除因美国制裁而导致的剩余航班限制，并全面恢复两国之间的正常航空旅行，尽管本周早些时候伊拉克的一个机场已经部分恢复了航班服务。

伊朗外交部周四发表声明，谴责华盛顿通过“域外执行”美国制裁来扰乱伊朗贸易和航空运输的“非法和不人道”行径，并敦促巴格达取消这些限制。

阿联酋禁止伊朗航空公司运营航班（共3项），美国制裁令伊朗航空业雪上加霜

列表 2/3：美国能否在全球范围内禁止伊朗航空公司运营——这将意味着什么？

伊拉克寻求美国豁免其对伊朗航班的禁令（共3条，此为第3条）

声明称，数百万伊朗和伊拉克公民的迁徙需要“独立和负责任的态度”来解决两国政府之间的分歧。

据伊拉克官方通讯社报道，纳杰夫和伊朗之间的航班已于周一晚些时候恢复，该通讯社将航班恢复归功于总理阿里·扎伊迪的“辛勤努力”。

伊拉克驻伊朗大使亚西尔·阿卜杜勒扎赫拉·哈贾杰表示，巴格达尚未决定暂停伊朗航班。

由于担心受到美国制裁，外国地面服务公司拒绝提供服务。

巴格达、埃尔比勒和苏莱曼尼亚机场的航班仍然停飞，迫使乘客进行至少 12 小时的陆路旅行，并扰乱了什叶派占多数地区之间的朝圣交通。

据伊朗新闻社 Press TV 报道，此次停飞事件引发了伊拉克各地的抗议活动，包括纳杰夫机场外以及纳西里耶、卡尔巴拉和阿马拉等地。

美国于9月23日生效的禁令针对任何与伊朗航空公司有业务往来的公司，严重切断了伊朗的国际航空联系。

据航空监测网站 FlightRadar24 的数据显示，往返德黑兰伊玛目霍梅尼国际机场的航班数量下降了 42%，其中飞往格鲁吉亚、阿曼和阿塞拜疆的航线已完全停飞，飞往迪拜的航班自 9 月 23 日起也已暂停。

飞往中国的航班数量保持稳定，而最繁忙的飞往土耳其的航线也仅下降了 19%，尽管个别航空公司已经调整了该航线的服务。

伊拉克政府曾以“与医疗、教育、宗教访问和平民利益相关的人道主义理由”为由，向美国寻求豁免。