Iraqi Transportation Committee Calls for Lifting Ban on SIA

SIA's Media

Sulaymaniyah International Airport.

The Transportation and Communications Committee of the Iraqi Parliament has urged the Iraqi parliament and government to take decisive measures to remove the sanctions imposed on Sulaymaniyah International Airport (SIA).

On July 2, 2024, the chairman and members of the Transportation and Communications Committee visited the SIA in response to a request from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) Faction in Iraq's parliament. This visit took place despite the fact that parliament was in recess. The tour's goal was to alleviate Turkish pressure and sanctions on the airport.

On Sunday, July 21, 2024, the committee issued a statement urging Iraq's parliament and government to remove the sanctions imposed on Sulaymaniyah airport as soon as possible and effectively.

The statement stated that the committee determined that the SIA, which holds the Civil Aviation Authority's second licence after Baghdad International Airport, has no administrative, technical, security, or service issues, and that targeting the airport is a form of political punishment.

"We call on the parliament to take serious practical steps and the government to make serious efforts to end the sanctions on the SIA as it is one of the civilian airports in Iraq," it added.

Karwan Yarwais, a member of the Transportation and Communications Committee of the Iraqi Parliament, stated to PUKMEDIA that the SIA does not have any legal, technical, administrative, or security issues. 

Yarwais also mentioned that the sanctions on the airport are for political reasons and should be lifted. 

The SIA has lost around $10 million in the previous 14 months as a result of suspending 35% of its flights because they fly over Türkiye. In contrast, its international flights have been trouble-free.



PUKMEDIA