ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey has lifted its flight ban on an airport in Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdish region, a restriction originally imposed in 2023 due to concerns over alleged Kurdish militant activity in the area.

The decision to resume flights to Sulaymaniyah International Airport was announced by the office of Nechirvan Barzani, president of the Kurdish Region, late Thursday following a meeting in Ankara with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Erdogan and Barzani discussed Turkey’s relations with Iraq and the Kurdish region, as well as opportunities for cooperation and regional developments, according to a statement from Erdogan’s office.

Turkey imposed the ban two years ago, citing an alleged increase in operations by the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, in Sulaymaniyah th

See Full Page