Iran suspends flights to Azerbaijan, Armenia

By Anadolu staff

ISTANBUL (AA) - Iran on Wednesday suspended flights to neighboring Azerbaijan and Armenia, according to local media reports.

Under a decision by Iran’s Civil Aviation Authority, the flights have been suspended “for a short time," Mohammad Mohammadi Bakhsh, head of the country’s Civil Aviation Authority, told the Iranian Labour News Agency (ILNA).

Flights will resume if conditions return to normal, he added.

On Tuesday, in the wake of provocations by Armenian forces in Karabakh, Azerbaijan said it had launched "counter-terrorism" activities in the region to uphold a 2020 trilateral peace agreement with Russia and Armenia.

On Thursday, a cease-fire was announced, but after Iran said it had suspended flights.

Relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

In the fall of 2020, Azerbaijan liberated several cities, villages and settlements from Armenian occupation during 44 days of clashes. The war ended that November with a Russia-brokered cease-fire.

Tensions between the two nations, however, continue despite ongoing talks aiming for a long-term peace deal.

*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat