Radiofarda – Flights by Iran’s Mahan airlines to Italy will come to an end soon, according to a decision by the Italian government, La Stampa reported on November 1.
The report says that Mahan air has a 45-day window to wind down its flights, with the deadline in December. The Italian government had announced its decision early October about not renewing Mahan’s permit to fly to Italy.
Mahan airlines was founded in 1992 as the first “private” airline of the country in the Iranian city of Kerman.
The United States sanctioned Mahan in 2011 for its links to the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps, IRGC, and for transporting weapons and military personnel in the Middle East to support Tehran’s allies, mainly Syria’s Bashar Assad and Shiite militias fighting for his regime.
Iranian officials have denied the accusation that Mahan transports weapons and assistance to Syria and for Lebanese Hezbollah.
France and Germany have also banned flights by the airline.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in October had thanked Italy for its decision to cancel Mahan’s flights, saying that Europe is gradually realizing the essence of Iran’s activities.
At the height of the crisis in Venezuela in April, the spokesman of Iran Civil Aviation Organization announced that Mahan Air started flights between Tehran and Caracas.