Iraq to reopen airports this month
The country is still registering around 2,000 COVID-19 cases per day, close to its highest-ever daily toll.
Iraq will reopen its airports on July 23, the government announced today. The monthslong ban on international passenger flights stranded many people in the country, but Iraq is still recording its highest-ever numbers of daily COVID-19 cases.
Curfews in federal territories will also end with the upcoming Eid al-Adha holiday at the end of the month. Malls can now reopen, as can some land borders for trade, per the announcement.
Iraq closed its airports to international passenger flights in March to help mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. Some exemption flights from Qatar Airways that cost several thousands of dollars continued every few weeks, as did repatriation and nongovernmental organization flights. The prohibitive costs of the Qatar flights and the ban on other flights led to thousands of foreigners and Iraqis being stuck in the country, including low-income workers.
Iraq has international airports throughout the country in both federal and Kurdistan Regional Government territory.
