Najaf airport officials stopped all Iranian carriers Friday, complying with a directive from the prime minister’s office that follows the U.S. Treasury’s ban on Iranian airlines.
The halt cuts the airport’s usual 20 daily Iranian flights to just four, impacting routes that ferry Shia pilgrims to Iraq’s holy cities and Iranian students and patients seeking treatment across the border.
Haidar Mansour, 50, had a kidney transplant scheduled in Tehran; he told AFP he now faces a 12‑hour overland journey that could jeopardise his treatment. Meanwhile, doctoral student Assad Jabbar was turned back in Qom, left stranded as taxis swell and prices climb.
Iraq has joined the UAE and other allies in enforcing the U.S. sanction. The governor said airports in Kurdistan and other Iraqi hubs are already applying the ban, and officials will monitor compliance until the next Treasury review.