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US seeks to block sanctioned Iranian airline’s flights into Europe

The Obama administration is warning EU allies to shut out Mahan Air or risk US retaliation.
An Airbus A310 of Iranian private airline Mahan Air taxis at Sanaa International airport following its first flight to Yemen from Iran, in Sanaa March 1, 2015. - Yemen and Iran signed a civil aviation deal on Saturday, Yemeni state news agency SABA reported, a move that may reflect Tehran's support for the Shi'ite Muslim militia that now controls Sanaa. The deal signed in Tehran by the aviation authorities of both countries allows Yemen and Iran each to fly up to 14 flights a week in both directions, SABA s
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The Obama administration is warning European countries and companies to shut out a sanctioned Iranian airline or risk US retaliation, Treasury officials told Al-Monitor.

US officials have long said that they retain the ability to sanction entities that do business with Mahan Air because of its alleged ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Those past remarks, however, have mostly focused on the sale of aircraft and parts as well as banking services, not on behind-the-scenes efforts to derail the airline's plans to further expand its flights to Europe and elsewhere around the globe.

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