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Conflict & Security16 outlets ran this3 min read

US lifts sanctions on Fly Baghdad airline linked to Iran's IRGC-Quds Force

The Treasury removed restrictions on the Iraqi carrier and two aircraft after administrative review, while keeping sanctions on its owner

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

Published Updated
An employee enters the headquarters of the Iraqi airline Fly Baghdad at Baghdad's International Airport on Jan 23, 2024. (Photo: AFP/Ahmad Al-Rubaye)

What this story says

  • The US Treasury removed sanctions on Fly Baghdad airline and two aircraft on 3 August 2026, following an administrative reconsideration process.
  • Sanctions on the airline’s owner, Basheer Abdulkadhim Alwan al-Shabbani, remain in place, as reported by Channel News Asia.
  • The Treasury stated the decision was not a shift in US policy toward Iran or the IRGC-Quds Force, according to an unnamed official.
  • Fly Baghdad was originally sanctioned in January 2024 over alleged support for the IRGC-Quds Force and its proxy groups.

Who covered it

Left 15%(2)Centre 23%(3)Right 62%(8)

Percentages are shares of the 13 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 3 of the 16 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

42/100

Craft

55/100

Hype

15/100

16 sources · methodology

The US Treasury lifted sanctions on Fly Baghdad, an Iraqi airline, and two of its aircraft on 3 August 2026. The airline had been sanctioned in January 2024 over allegations it provided support to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force (IRGC-Quds Force) and its proxy groups in Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. Fly Baghdad had denied the accusations at the time.

The Treasury’s decision followed an administrative reconsideration process, as stated by an unnamed US official to Agence France-Presse (AFP). The official said Fly Baghdad had demonstrated "major changes to their operations" that made its listing no longer warranted. Sanctions on the airline’s owner, Basheer Abdulkadhim Alwan al-Shabbani, were not lifted. The Treasury clarified the removal was not a change in US policy toward Iran, the IRGC-Quds Force or any designated terrorist organisation.

What the coverage left out

No left- or right-rated outlet ran this story at all. The only report published, by Channel News Asia, did not specify what operational changes Fly Baghdad had made to warrant the lifting of sanctions.

Tags:#USIranRelations#MiddleEastSanctions#IRGCQudsForce#IraqiAirlines#FlyBaghdad

Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 1 time, most recently on 5 Aug 2026, 20:00, and will add the sides that appear.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

2 rated outlets

  • The reports agree that the US removed sanctions on Fly Baghdad airline, which had been designated for ties to Iran’s IRGC-Quds Force. Both note the airline and two of its Boeing 737 aircraft were taken off the sanctions list on 29 July 2026.
  • Cumhuriyet led on the removal of the airline and aircraft from the sanctions list, quoting the US Treasury’s statement. It reported that the CEO, Beşir Abdulkadim Alvan eş-Şabbani, remained sanctioned but the reason given for his designation was updated to cite IRGC-Quds Force links. The digest of Vanguard News did not mention the CEO or the aircraft.
  • Cumhuriyet included the US Treasury’s original justification for the sanctions: Fly Baghdad’s connection to the IRGC-Quds Force. The Vanguard News digest did not carry this detail.

Centre

3 rated outlets

  • Channel News Asia, the only outlet to publish a full report, led on the Treasury’s decision to lift sanctions on Fly Baghdad and two of its aircraft. The report included the airline’s denial of the original allegations and the Treasury’s statement that the removal was not a policy shift. It also noted the maintenance of sanctions on the airline’s owner, Basheer Abdulkadhim Alwan al-Shabbani, and quoted an unnamed US Treasury official describing the operational changes that led to the decision.
  • The report contextualised the sanctions within broader US-Iran tensions, including the Trump administration’s actions against Iran’s leadership and economy, Tehran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and stalled negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme. It did not include details on what specific operational changes Fly Baghdad had made.

Right

8 rated outlets

We have not written our reading of the right coverage of this story. The right-rated outlets that ran it are listed below.

Read it at the source

16 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

2

Centre

3

Right

8

Not rated

3

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

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