ERBIL () — The Iraqi government said Saturday it is holding direct talks with the United States to secure exemptions from measures targeting Iranian airlines, after the restrictions disrupted travel for patients, students, and religious pilgrims.
All Iraqi airports enforced the measures this week, causing significant disruption, particularly at Najaf International Airport, a major destination for Iranian flights to Iraq.
“The Iraqi government is holding direct talks with the American side to exempt certain Iraqi airports from these measures,” the Iraqi Prime Minister’s Media Office said in a statement.
Such an exemption would allow flights to resume on humanitarian grounds, including for medical treatment, education, religious visits, and the benefit of civilians, the statement added.
Iranian airlines play a significant role in transporting Iraqi Shia pilgrims to Iran’s holy cities and Iranian visitors to sacred sites in Iraq. Their flights also serve Iraqi students studying in Iran and patients traveling there for medical treatment.
Several Iraqis told AFP that enforcement of the US measures had left them scrambling to find alternative arrangements. Some patients feared losing access to treatment in Iran, while others were stranded there and faced journeys of more than 12 hours by land to return to Iraq.
Iraq is among several countries, including the United Arab Emirates, that have enforced the US measures targeting Iranian airlines after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday that Iranian airlines would be “shut down.”
The restrictions have placed Iraq in a difficult position as it maintains close relations with neighboring Iran, with ties shaped by religious connections as well as longstanding political and economic interests.
Iraqi airlines had already suspended flights to Iran at the beginning of the Middle East war in February, further limiting air travel between the two neighboring countries.
The Iraqi government’s talks with Washington are now focused on securing exemptions that would enable essential air connections to continue, particularly for medical, educational, and religious travel.
The dispute comes as Washington has intensified economic pressure on Tehran, targeting Iran’s aviation sector as part of a broader sanctions campaign.
The US Treasury said earlier in the month that Iranian airlines had been used to support the movement of weapons, personnel, and illicit cargo, while warning entities providing services to sanctioned carriers of potential consequences.
The measures have put Iraq in a delicate position, as Baghdad maintains close political, economic, and religious ties with Iran while also seeking to preserve its relationship with Washington.
