In Sign of Thaw, Iraq Lifts Flight Ban on Kurdish Region

Baghdad had imposed the restriction after last year’s referendum on independence

BAGHDAD—A dispute between the Iraqi government and its semiautonomous Kurdish region is easing, five months after clashes in the wake of a referendum on independence that changed the balance of power in the country.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Tuesday said he would lift a ban on international flights to and from the region this week, the latest sign of a thaw. The move followed an agreement with Kurdish officials to put their two airports under federal control.

...