ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi airline Fly Baghdad on Monday responded to a decision by the United States Department of Treasury to sanction the company and its CEO for “providing assistance” to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its proxies, stating that it will seek compensation through legal action.
The US Department of Treasury announced the adoption of sanctions against Fly Baghdad and its CEO Basheer Abdulkadhim Alwan al-Shabbani for providing assistance to the IRGC. Fly Baghdad was accused of transporting fighters, weapons, and money to Syria and Lebanon.
The airline said in a statement that both the company and its owner were “surprised” by the decision taken by the US Treasury Department.
“Fly Baghdad denounces this decision as it is not based on any material or moral evidence that could convict the company,” read a statement from Fly Baghdad on X, adding that the company has worked “for years under the direct supervision of the Iraqi government”.
“We also demand that the US Treasury provide any material evidence that could convict the company or its management,” continued the statement, adding that the company will pursue legal action in view of demanding “material and moral compensation.”
Along with Fly Baghdad and its CEO, three senior members of the Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah were also sanctioned by the US.
Moanes al-Ibudi, a senior member of the Kataib Hezbollah and a member of the Iraqi parliament, Riyad Ali Hussein al-Azzawi, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) specialist and an engineer for the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), and Awqad Muhsin Faraj al-Hamidawi, who directs Kataib Hezbollah’s “businesses and aspects of the financial portfolio,” were a part of the list of individuals sanctioned by the US.
None of the sanctioned individuals have released a statement about the decision yet.
US envoy to Iraq, Alina Romanowski said on X that the decision underscores the US’ “willingness to respond to the ongoing threat the IRGC and its proxy network poses to Iraq,” adding that Iran’s use of a commercial Iraqi airline to transport weapons, fighters, as well as to smuggle US dollars constitutes “an egregious violation of Iraqi sovereignty.”
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