The United States Department of the Treasury has removed Iraqi airline Fly Baghdad from its sanctions list. The updated designation record was published on the agency website.
The decision by the Office of Foreign Assets Control removes restrictions from the Baghdad-registered company and two of its Boeing 737 aircraft. The Treasury Department did not provide a reason for delisting the carrier.
The carrier was founded in 2014 and has operated under the names Fly Baghdad, Fly Baghdad Airlines Company, and Iraq Express. The Treasury initially placed Fly Baghdad under sanctions in January 2024 under the Specially Designated Global Terrorist program over alleged ties to the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Sanctions background and owner status
Sanctions remain in force against chief executive officer and owner Bashir al-Shabbani. The Treasury updated his listing to link him directly to the Quds Force rather than to Fly Baghdad.
US officials previously stated that Fly Baghdad supported Quds Force operations and proxy groups in Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon for years. Authorities said flights to Damascus carried weapons for the Syrian Republican Guard, Lebanese Hezbollah, and Kata'ib Hezbollah. Fly Baghdad denied the accusations at the time and stated that it would appeal the restrictions.
The United States has continued targeting financial networks connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. On July 29, US authorities sanctioned Iranian companies selling insurance in the Strait of Hormuz to fund the force, while Reuters reported on July 31 that Iran had used an illegal gambling network to evade sanctions.
