Europe lifts ban on Iraqi Airways entering airspace

Travellers board an Iraqi Airways plane at Baghdad International airport in Baghdad, October 15, 2014. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani/Files

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The European Aviation Safety Agency has lifted a ban on Iraqi Airways entering European airspace, Iraq's transport minister Kadhim al-Hamami told state television on Thursday. The national carrier was banned from flying to Europe in 2015 because it did not meet International Civil Aviation Organization safety standards. "Iraqi Airways were removed from the black list and put under monitoring by the European Aviation Safety Agency, Hamami said. (Reporting by Saif Hameed; Editing by Louise Ireland)