
Iraq reopens Mosul airport 11 years after ISIL conflict, destruction
'The airport will serve as an additional link between Mosul and other Iraqi cities and regional destinations,' the prime minister's media office said in a statement on Wednesday.
Al-Sudani's flight landed at the airport, which is expected to become fully operational for domestic and international flights in two months. Wednesday's ceremony was held nearly three years after then-Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi laid the foundation stone for the airport's reconstruction.
Airport director Amar al-Bayati told the AFP news agency that the 'airport is now ready for domestic and international flights.' He added that the airport previously offered international flights, mostly to Turkiye and Jordan.
In June 2014, ISIL seized Mosul, declaring its 'caliphate' from Iraq's second biggest city after capturing large swaths of Iraq and neighbouring Syria, imposing hardline rule over millions of people, displacing hundreds of thousands and slaughtering thousands more.
Nouri al-Maliki, who was the Iraqi prime minister at the time, declared a state of emergency and said the government would arm civilians who volunteered 'to defend the homeland and defeat terrorism'.
At its peak, the group ruled over an area half the size of the United Kingdom and was notorious for its brutality. It beheaded civilians, massacred 1,700 captured Iraqi soldiers in a short period, and enslaved and raped thousands of women from the Yazidi community, one of Iraq's oldest religious minorities.
A coalition of more than 80 countries led by the United States was formed to fight the group in September 2014. The alliance continues to carry out raids against the group's hideouts in Syria and Iraq.
The war against the group officially ended in March 2019 when US-backed, Kurdish-led fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) captured the eastern Syrian town of Baghouz, which was the last sliver of land ISIL controlled.
The group was also defeated in Iraq in July 2017 when Iraqi forces recaptured Mosul. ISIL then declared its defeat across the country at the end of that year. Three months later, the group suffered a major blow when the SDF took back the northern Syrian city of Raqqa, its de facto capital.
The airport, which was heavily damaged in the battle, has not been operational since the initial fall of Mosul.
It now includes a main terminal, a VIP lounge and an advanced radar surveillance system, al-Sudani's office said, adding that it is expected to handle 630,000 passengers annually.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Al Jazeera
4 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera condemns Israeli incitement against Gaza reporter Anas al-Sharif
Al Jazeera Media Network has denounced the Israeli military for what it called a 'campaign of incitement' against its reporters in the Gaza Strip, including most notably Al Jazeera Arabic correspondent Anas al-Sharif. In a statement on Friday, Al Jazeera said it 'strongly condemns and denounces these relentless efforts, which have consistently incited against its staff since the beginning of its coverage of the ongoing Israeli war on Gaza'. 'The Network considers this incitement a dangerous attempt to justify the targeting of its journalists in the field.' The statement comes just days after Israeli army spokesperson Avichai Adraee reshared a video on social media accusing al-Sharif of being a member of Hamas's military wing – a claim that has been forcefully rejected as false. Israel has routinely accused Palestinian journalists in Gaza of being members of Hamas since it launched its war on the enclave in October 2023 as part of what rights groups say is an effort to discredit their reporting on Israeli abuses. The Israeli military has killed more than 200 reporters and media workers since its bombardment began, including several Al Jazeera journalists and their relatives. On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said it was 'deeply alarmed' by Adraee's threats against al-Sharif and called on the international community to protect him. 'This is not the first time Al-Sharif has been targeted by the Israeli military, but the danger to his life is now acute,' CPJ's Regional Director Sara Qudah said in a statement. 'Israel has killed at least six Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza during this war. These latest unfounded accusations represent an effort to manufacture consent to kill Al-Sharif.' In its statement, Al Jazeera Media Network said it held the Israeli authorities 'fully responsible' for the safety of its staff. It also called on states and international organisations to ensure that all journalists in Gaza are protected. 'Israel's continued obstruction of international journalists from entering Gaza to report on the catastrophic situation has placed an even greater burden on Al Jazeera's journalists,' the network said. Those reporters, it added, 'have shouldered the responsibility of conveying the truth as they witness it firsthand, despite enduring extreme hardships, including starvation, violence, terror, and a complete lack of life's most basic necessities'.


Al Jazeera
7 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Palestinian journalist Adam Abu Harbid killed in Israeli strike
Palestinian journalist Adam Abu Harbid killed in Israeli strike NewsFeed An Israeli strike on a tent sheltering displaced Palestinians killed several people overnight, including journalist Adam Abu Harbid. Major international news outlets have issued a statement warning that journalists in Gaza are working under dire circumstances. Video Duration 01 minutes 40 seconds 01:40 Video Duration 02 minutes 57 seconds 02:57 Video Duration 03 minutes 36 seconds 03:36 Video Duration 03 minutes 40 seconds 03:40 Video Duration 00 minutes 37 seconds 00:37 Video Duration 00 minutes 57 seconds 00:57 Video Duration 02 minutes 50 seconds 02:50


Al Jazeera
7 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Trump says Hamas will be ‘hunted down' as Gaza ceasefire talks wane
Washington, DC – United States President Donald Trump has suggested that Hamas is refusing to agree to a Gaza truce because it fears what comes after all the Israeli captives are released. Trump's comments at the White House on Friday appear to suggest that the US and Israel are not ready to guarantee a lasting end to the war but rather a short-term truce to get Israeli captives out of Gaza. 'We're down to the final hostages, and they know what happens after you get the final hostages,' the US president told reporters. 'And basically because of that, they really didn't want to make a deal.' Trump blamed the Palestinian group solely for the apparent collapse of the ceasefire talks, saying the group is going to be 'hunted down'. 'Hamas didn't really want to make a deal. I think they want to die, and it's very, very bad,' he said. On Thursday, Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said Washington was cutting short its involvement in the negotiations, accusing Hamas of showing 'a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire'. Israel also said it withdrew its negotiators from Qatar, where the ceasefire talks were taking place. Hamas expressed bewilderment at the US position, saying it had made 'a sincere commitment to the success of the mediators' efforts' to reach a deal. The group also said the mediators — Qatar and Egypt — welcomed its 'constructive and positive' position. Talks have been ongoing for months to secure a 60-day truce that would see the release of 10 Israeli captives and a pause in the Israeli bombardment of Palestinians in Gaza. Hamas has insisted that it is seeking a permanent ceasefire. Witkoff previously said the truce 'will lead to a lasting peace in Gaza'. However, Israeli officials repeatedly described plans to return to the fighting and remove all Palestinians from Gaza after the captives are released. In fact, Israeli Minister of Defence Israel Katz has said that the country would use the truce to move hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to an internment camp in southern Gaza, in preparation for their removal from the territory altogether. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said during a visit to Washington, DC, earlier this month that Israel 'still has to finish the job in Gaza' despite the ceasefire talks. In February, Trump called for depopulating Gaza and turning the territory into a 'Riviera of the Middle East' — a proposal that legal experts say would amount to ethnic cleansing, a crime against humanity. Israel has systematically flattened large parts of Gaza, using bombardment, explosives and bulldozers in what advocates say is an effort to make the territory unliveable. Netanyahu has argued, however, that the departure of Palestinians would be 'voluntary'. But human rights experts warned that people do not actually have a choice when they are under the threat of bombardment and starvation. On Thursday, Trump suggested that Gaza is set to experience more violence, saying Israel is 'going to have to fight'. 'They're going to have to clean it up. You're going to have to get rid of it,' he said. Trump dismisses French recognition of Palestine The US president's comments come as deadly hunger continues to spread in Gaza due to an Israeli blockade impeding the flow of aid and other essential supplies into the territory. The Israeli-imposed starvation in Gaza has garnered international condemnation, even from close allies of the US and Israel. On Thursday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney slammed the denial of humanitarian aid to Gaza as a 'violation of international law'. French President Emmanuel Macron also said his country will recognise Palestine as a state at the United Nations General Assembly in September. Before leaving for the United Kingdom on Friday, Trump dismissed his French counterpart's statement, saying it 'doesn't carry any weight'. 'Here's the good news: What he says doesn't matter,' Trump said. 'It's not going to change anything.'