Tehran threatens regional airports complying with US flight ban targeting Iranian airlines

“If a country cooperates with or embarks on adventures with the United States, its airports will no longer be able to operate flights,” Rezaei threatened.

Tehran will attack the airports of neighboring countries that cooperate with US sanctions against Iranian airlines, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said in an interview with state television on Wednesday.

The threat came after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Monday that all Iranian airlines would be forced to stop operating by Wednesday, while countries allowing air services that enable the continued flights would face secondary sanctions.

“If a country cooperates with or embarks on adventures with the United States, its airports will no longer be able to operate flights,” Rezaei threatened.

Georgia and Azerbaijan both confirmed that flights from Iranian airlines were suspended, and a travel agent in Tehran told Agence France-Presse that flights to Baghdad, Muscat and Qatar were also halted.

Turkish Airlines, AJet and Pegasus have canceled flights to and from Iran, though Iranian airlines have been allowed to continue operating between the two countries.

Tehran flights continue to various destinations despite sanctions

FlightRadar24 also published data suggesting that a flight operated by the sanctioned Mahan Air flew from Tehran to Guangzhou, China, after the Wednesday deadline came into effect, with additional flights listed to Bangkok, Phuket, Shanghai, and Kabul.

Despite the threat indicating a shift in Iran’s narrative from attacking US assets to openly admitting to targeting the states themselves, Bahraini political analyst Dr. Ahmed Alkhuzaie told The Jerusalem Post that he suspected public opinion in regional states had not changed significantly.

Alkhuzaie predicted that although Iran’s threats would be “taken seriously,” “they won’t comply” with the demand.

Iran will likely make a show of force against Bahrain or Kuwait before other Gulf states to try to force compliance, he suggested.