Airports in Baghdad and Muscat will stop accepting flights from Iran from midnight local time, Iran’s state-linked Tasnim news agency reported yesterday, citing a spokesperson for Iran’s Civil Aviation Organisation.
Iranian aviation authorities are co-ordinating with their counterparts to redirect flights bound for Baghdad to Iraq’s Najaf airport, the spokesperson said.
Other international flights from Iran, including those to Istanbul, will continue operating as scheduled, with no current disruptions, according to the spokesperson.
The development comes as Iranian airlines face growing restrictions abroad amid a US campaign to further isolate Tehran economically. Foreign companies providing Iranian airlines with services including refueling and ground handling risk being cut off from the US financial system under measures taking effect today.
Washington has accused Iranian commercial airlines of helping transport weapons and fighters. The US has also blacklisted agents linked to Mahan Air and designated 27 smaller Iranian carriers as part of its latest measures targeting the aviation sector.
The aviation pressure comes alongside a US naval blockade targeting traffic through Iranian ports, which has sharply disrupted Tehran’s seaborne trade.
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