Turkey to suspend flights to KRG as of Sept 29

Flights from Turkey to northern Iraq will be suspended as of Sept. 29, the Turkish Consulate in Arbil stated on Sept. 27, as Ankara continues to object to the recent independence referendum in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region (KRG).
 
In a statement posted on Twitter, the consulate said Iraq's Civil Aviation Authority had announced the suspension of flights to and from Arbil, the administrative capital of the KRG, as well as Sulaymaniyah, as of Sept. 29.
     
"In this case, it will not be possible for Turkish Airlines, AtlasGlobal, or Pegasus [airlines] to carry out mutual flights from our country to Arbil or Sulaymaniyah," the statement read.     
   
Late on Sept. 26, Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi gave the KRG "three days" to hand over control of the airports under its control to avoid an air embargo.        

The moves come amid mounting tension between Baghdad and the KRG over the latter's decision to hold a referendum on regional independence on Sept. 25.        

Earlier on Sept. 27, Turkey's flag carrier Turkish Airlines said it had no plans to suspend flights to northern Iraq, and there was no immediate response by Turkish Airlines to the consulate's announcement.        

On Sept. 27, Egypt's national air carrier announced that as of Sept. 29, it would suspend all flights to Arbil.        
Lebanon's Middle East Airlines also announced plans to halt all flights, also starting on Sept. 29, both to and from the KRG.