Iraq has lifted the ban on international flights to the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) airports after federal authority was restored at the hubs, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a statement on Tuesday

"Kurdistan's regional airports will be under the command of the Federal Ministry of the Interior," the statement said.

Al-Abadi's announcement on Tuesday comes some six months after the airports were initially shut to international flights following a controversial referendum vote in northern Iraq's self-ruled Kurdish region that overwhelmingly backed independence from Baghdad.

The vote, though non-binding, was held across the autonomous Kurdish region's three provinces as well as in some disputed territories controlled by Iraqi Kurdish security forces but claimed by Baghdad.

The referendum was vehemently rejected by Baghdad and Iraq's other neighbors, ratcheting up tensions in the region on the heels of military victories against the Daesh group. </s> Safin Hamed, AFP | A roundabout at Erbil's International Airport in the capital of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a decree on Tuesday he would lift a ban on international air traffic to the Kurdistan Region and flights could resume within one week.

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International flights to and from the semi-autonomous region's two main airports in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah were halted on Sept. 29 as part of sanctions imposed on the Kurds after they held an independence referendum four days earlier in defiance of Baghdad and voted overwhelmingly in favour of separation.

Kurdish authorities have agreed that the airports should come under federal control and report to Baghdad's interior ministry, the decree said.

"The opening of Kurdish airports to international flights is an important step," Kurdish Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani told a news conference according to Kurdish Rudaw TV. "We hope more significant steps will be taken."

Only domestic flights have been allowed through the region's airports, with foreign airlines suspending their routes in accordance with an order from the central government.

This hit the Kurdistan Region's economy, with a decrease in tourism and travel affecting local businesses.

Abadi's decree announced the creation of a new Directorate for Special Protection for Kurdistan's airports "under the command and control of the Federal Ministry of the Interior".

Federal customs authorities will supervise the "introduction, production and handling of materials and equipment through the two airports", the decree said.

It also specified that a biometric system used in Kurdistan's airports will be linked with the federal system.

It was not immediately clear whether the region would maintain its independent visa system. The deputy spokesman for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said talks were ongoing on the issue.

Budget dispute

The decree comes amid a dispute over the 2018 budget, which the Kurds have vehemently opposed since it was passed by parliament earlier this month.

Soon after the decree was issued, a legal advisor to Iraq's President Fuad Masum, said Masum was refusing to approve the budget.

"After checking the budget we found constitutional, legal and financial violations that need to be addressed by parliament, which should make amendments and return the budget to the president for approval," Amir al-Kenany told Reuters.

The long-delayed budget of 104 trillion Iraqi dinars ($88 billion) was passed by parliament on March 3, but Kurdish lawmakers boycotted the vote in protest over their region's diminished allocation.

The budget cut the Kurds' share from the 17 percent the region has traditionally received since the fall of Saddam Hussein. It did not specify the exact percentage to be allocated to the KRG instead stipulating it would receive funds proportional to its share of the population.

In a previous draft the KRG portion was set at 12.67 percent, which is how much of Iraq's population Baghdad says the provinces in Kurdistan make up. The KRG disputes that estimate.

Masum is a Kurd and holds a largely ceremonial role as most power lies with the prime minister who belongs to the Shi'ite Muslim majority.

However, he has the authority guaranteed by Iraq's constitution to ratify all laws passed by parliament and can return draft laws to parliament.

"We are sending it (the budget) back to the parliament to amend the legal and constitutional violations we pointed out," Kenany said.

(REUTERS) </s> Iraq has lifted the ban on international flights to the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region’s airports, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Tuesday. Kurdistan’s regional airports will be under the command of the federal Interior Ministry, according to the prime minister’s statement. The ban on international flights was part of sanctions imposed on the Kurdistan Region after it conducted a referendum in September on Kurdish independence in defiance of Baghdad’s position, Reuters said. Al-Abadi’s announcement came following a meeting with police officers and employees at the Kurdish airports. “The local authorities in Kurdistan Region reciprocated to returning the federal authority to Erbil and Sulaimaniyah airports,” the statement said. </s> Iraqi authorities said on Tuesday they were lifting a nearly six-month air blockade imposed on Iraqi Kurdistan in response to its holding of an independence referendum.

Federal authorities imposed the blockade in September after Iraqi Kurdistan voted overwhelmingly for independence in a non-binding referendum rejected as illegal by the central government.

It was extended in December for two months and renewed in February for another possible three months. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a statement the airports of Kurdish regional capital Arbil and second city Sulaimaniyah would again be “open to international flights”.

The decision to lift the flight ban was made “after local Kurdish authorities accepted that central authorities retake control of the two airports,” the statement said.

The formal lifting of the blockade will take place in the next few days, Abadi’s spokesman Saad al-Hadithi told AFP.

“This will depend on how long it takes for employees of the central government to start working in the airports,” he said.

Iraqi Kurdish prime minister Nechirvan Barzani told a press conference shortly after the announcement that he “thanked Baghdad and Prime Minister Abadi because it is he who decided to reopen the airports”.

Since the flight ban went into force, all Kurdistan-bound international flights have been rerouted to Baghdad, which also imposed entry visas on foreigners wishing to visit the Kurdish region.

The flight ban was part of a battery of penalties inflicted on the Kurds as Baghdad sought to nullify the poll, with federal forces also seizing disputed oil-rich regions.

Baghdad demanded to take over passport control in airports in Kurdistan as well as customs issues.

Arbil had already agreed to that and control of airport security was the last stumbling block, an official told AFP at the end of February when the blockade was extended for another three months.

Abadi met with a Kurdish delegation on Tuesday, a senior Kurdish official confirmed to AFP on condition of anonymity, and the two sides agreed that the issues of security and passports would be entrusted to Baghdad.

Baghdad and Arbil have been engaged in a political and territorial struggle since the September 25 independence referendum.

Iraqi Kurdish peshmerga forces took control of the northern province of Kirkuk, home to key oilfields, in June 2014 after federal forces withdrew in the face of an offensive by the Islamic State group.

Late last year, following the failed independence push, federal forces recaptured the oilfields, severing a key financial lifeline for the Kurds.

This month the Iraqi parliament approved the 2018 budget in the absence of Kurdish lawmakers who boycotted the meeting to protest a cut in the amount allocated to their autonomous region. </s> Baghdad calls for suspension of international flights to Kurdish region after ‘Yes’ vote wins independence referendum, reports Al Jazeera.

 Kurdish regional authorities in northern Iraq are under increasing pressure after Monday’s independence referendum, as the Iraqi government calls for a suspension of international flights to airports in the Kurdish region. Lebanon’s Middle East Airlines (MEA) will suspend flights to and from Erbil airport in northern Iraq from Friday, citing an Iraqi government decision to block international flights at the airport, MEA Chairman Mohammad al-Hout said by phone.

 “For now, we’re stopping. The last flight is on the 29th, until they solve the issue,” he told Reuters news agency on Wednesday. MEA’s decision comes just hours after Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi threatened to impose an international air embargo on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) if it does not hand over control of its airports.

 The KRG’s transportation ministry rejected the Iraqi government’s ultimatum and insisted that the region’s airports will remain under the control of Kurdish authorities. On Tuesday, Kurdish leader Masoud Barzani announced that the majority of Kurdish voters supported independence in Monday’s referendum. The embargo threat is the latest in a string of retaliatory measures against the KRG’s push for independence. Domestic flights are not involved in the ultimatum and in the worst case, international travel to and from the KRG will be re-routed through Baghdad and other Iraqi airports, Abadi said.

 Baghdad last week asked foreign countries to stop direct flights to the international airports of Erbil and Sulaymaniya, in KRG territory, but only Iran declared such an air embargo, halting direct flights to and from northern Iraq.

 Baghdad will also ask neighbouring countries to shut the border with Iraq’s Kurdish region if the KRG does not hand over border posts to the central government by Friday. In response, Barzani urged the world to “respect the will of millions of people” who voted in Monday’s referendum. He called on Baghdad to engage in a “serious dialogue” with the KRG.

 Despite opposition from Baghdad, Turkey and Iran, Iraqi Kurds went to the polls on Monday, with an estimated 72 percent voter turnout, according to the election commission. In a televised speech from Ankara on Tuesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened to impose sanctions against the semi-autonomous Kurdish region, saying it “will be left in a lurch” and its people would go hungry.

 “If [Iraqi Kurd leader Masoud] Barzani and the Kurdish Regional Government do not go back on this mistake as soon as possible, they will go down in history with the shame of having dragged the region into an ethnic and sectarian war,” Erdogan said. The comments came as Iraqi troops joined the Turkish army for joint military exercises near Turkey’s border with northern Iraq.

 Turkey has long been northern Iraq’s main link to the outside world, but sees the referendum as a threat to its own national security, fearing it will inflame separatism among its own Kurdish population. </s> Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Passengers in Irbil give their views on the flight ban

Iraq's central government has suspended international flights to and from the Kurdistan Region, as pressure mounts after Monday's independence referendum.

Baghdad had said only domestic flights would be allowed from 18:00 (15:00 GMT) on Friday unless the Kurds handed over control of Irbil and Sulaimaniya airports.

Humanitarian, military and diplomatic flights are also reported to be exempt.

The Kurdistan government refused Baghdad's demand, calling it "illegal".

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi wants the referendum, in which 92% of voters backed secession, to be annulled.

Kurdish leaders insist the referendum was legitimate and that they now have a mandate to start negotiations with Baghdad and neighbouring countries.

Why is Baghdad restricting flights?

Kurds are the fourth-largest ethnic group in the Middle East but they have never obtained a permanent nation state.

In Iraq, where they make up an estimated 15-20% of the population of 37 million, Kurds faced decades of repression before acquiring autonomy in 1991.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Regional carriers said they would suspend flights to the Kurdistan Region at Baghdad's request

On Wednesday, Kurdish officials said 2.8 million people living in the three provinces that form the Kurdistan Region, as well as "areas of Kurdistan outside the region's administration", had voted in favour of independence.

The announcement came despite a last-minute appeal for the result to be "cancelled" from Mr Abadi, who said the referendum was "unconstitutional".

Mr Abadi vowed to "impose Iraq's rule" and reaffirmed his threat to stop direct international flights to and from the Kurdistan Region.

What do the Kurds say?

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) said on Thursday that a ban would be "completely illegal" and amount to "collective punishment against the Kurds".

Officials said the airports were already subject to the Iraq Civil Aviation Authority and that any restrictions would affect the battle against so-called Islamic State (IS).

Kurdish Peshmerga forces have driven the jihadist group out of large parts of northern Iraq since 2014 with air and ground support from a US-led coalition.

"We have an international community here, so this is not going to be only against Kurdish people," Irbil airport's director, Talar Faiq Salih, told the BBC on Thursday.

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Activists at the airport released balloons bearing messages that urged peace with Baghdad

She later told reporters that humanitarian, military and diplomatic flights were exempt from the ban.

However, Lufthansa, Austrian Airlines, Turkish Airlines and other carriers said they would suspend flights at Baghdad's request.

The KRG also vowed to take legal measures to counter recent decisions by the Iraqi parliament, which on Wednesday asked Mr Abadi to send troops to the oil-rich Kirkuk region and other disputed areas currently controlled by Kurdish forces.

How have Iraq's neighbours reacted?

Turkey and Iran, which have Kurdish minorities and are fiercely opposed to Iraqi Kurds gaining independence, have also increased the pressure on the KRG.

Mr Abadi's office said on Thursday that Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim had agreed to deal exclusively with the central government over crude oil exports. That could result in a key pipeline from the Kirkuk region, which provides the KRG with more than 80% of its income, being cut off.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Iraq's Kurdish region foreign affairs minister says independence is 'inevitable'

On Friday, Iran banned the transportation of refined crude oil products by Iranian companies to and from the Kurdistan Region, the Tasnim news agency reported.

The BBC's Mark Lowen in Irbil says dialogue is the likely way out of this impasse.

But with Iraq facing elections in April, our correspondent adds, there is pressure in Baghdad to remain firm and as yet no sign of compromise.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Friday that Washington did not recognise the referendum.

"We encourage all sides to engage constructively in a dialogue to improve the future of all Iraqis," he added. </s> Qatar Airways is cancelling flights to Kurdish northern Iraq from Sept 29 to Oct 1 at the request of Iraq´s Civil Aviation Authority, the carrier said on its website on Thursday.

The flights to and from Erbil and Sulaymaniyah have been cancelled after Iraqi authorities said all international air traffic would be suspended from Friday to those airports, the statement said.

Lebanon´s and Egypt´s national carriers also said earlier they will halt flights to the Iraqi Kurdish regional capital Arbil this week at the request of the Baghdad authorities.

Their decision comes after Iraq´s government threatened to ban international flights to and from Iraqi Kurdistan after the region held an independence referendum on Monday.

Lebanon´s Middle East Airlines and EgyptAir both said their flights to and from Arbil would be affected.

MEA chairman Mohammed al-Hout confirmed "the suspension of all flights to and from Arbil from Friday, upon the request of the Iraqi aviation authorities for the halt of all international fights to and from the airport."

In a statement, EgyptAir also said its flights would halt from Friday "until further notice."

The transport minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government, Mawloud Bawah Murad, expressed bafflement at the move by Baghdad.

"Arbil and Sulaimaniyah airports were built from the budget of the Kurdistan government," he told a press conference in Arbil.

"We want more clarifications from the Iraqi government on its demand to hand them the two airports, because we don´t understand how to give them the two airports, when they are already subject to the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority.”

Baghdad has reacted with anger to Monday´s Kurdish independence vote, saying there would be no negotiations on wider autonomy for the Kurds in its wake. </s> BAGHDAD, March 13 (Reuters) - Iraq has lifted the ban on international flights to the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region's airports, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Kurdistan's regional airports will be under the command of the Federal Ministry of the Interior," the statement said.

The ban on international flights was part of sanctions imposed on the Kurdistan Region after it conducted a referendum in September on Kurdish independence in defiance of Baghdad's wishes. (Reporting by Raya Jalabi Editing by Alison Williams) </s> ANKARA (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority (ICAA) said in a statement that all international flights to and from Erbil and Sulaymaniyah airports would be suspended starting from 15:00 GMT on Friday.

"We consider it reasonable for our citizens, who do not have the pressing need to stay in Northern Iraq, to leave its territory before flights are terminated there at 18:00 [15:00 GMT] September 29," the Thursday statement read.

​On Tuesday, Baghdad also reportedly required Erbil to transfer control of Kurdistan regional border posts and airports to the Iraqi central government. Earlier in the day, the region's transport minister said that Erbil was ready to discuss stationing federal observers in Erbil and Sulaymaniyah airports unless Baghdad tries to manage the airports.

​The independence vote took place in Kurdistan as well as in the disputed areas officially controlled by Baghdad but de-facto under the control of the Kurdish authorities. More than 90 percent of voters cast their ballots in favor of gaining independence from Iraq, according to local media. The referendum has been criticized by Iraq's neighbors, the United States and the United Nations.
Iraq's federal government halts all international flights to and from Iraqi Kurdistan until Kurdish security forces hand over control of Erbil International Airport and Sulaimaniyah International Airport. The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) calls the ban "illegal".