Iraq Airport Official Arrested over MEA Row
The deputy head of Baghdad airport was arrested after a Baghdad-bound Middle East Airlines plane that left Beirut without the Iraqi transport minister's son was ordered mid-flight to turn back, the premier's spokesman said Friday.
Samer "Kubba was arrested... because his action was wrong and harmful to the prestige of the Iraqi state," Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's spokesman Ali Mussawi told Agence France Presse.
It was unclear what role Kubba, who was arrested Thursday by troops reporting directly to Maliki, is thought to have played in the incident.
Middle East Airlines said Thursday that Iraqi authorities forced its Baghdad-bound flight to turn around some 20 minutes out of Beirut because Transport Minister Hadi al-Ameri's son, Mahdi, had missed the flight.
MEA said the flight had taken off after repeatedly paging two passengers, who failed to turn up.
"The passengers did not respond to the calls and the plane took off after being delayed by several minutes," it said.
"About 20 minutes after take-off, Middle East Airlines was informed by its Baghdad office that the plane would be prevented from landing by local civil aviation officials if a passenger was not on board."
The missing passenger was identified as Mahdi al-Ameri, and the plane turned back to Beirut.
Following the incident, Mussawi said Maliki ordered that "all those responsible for preventing the plane coming from Beirut from landing in Baghdad" be "dismissed and held responsible."
But transport ministry spokesman Karim Nuri said it was "completely untrue" that the flight was turned back on behalf of Ameri's son.
He insisted that MEA had been previously told that the plane would not be able to land due to runway maintenance at the Baghdad airport, which is why it was turned back.
10 years
Iraq's Malki is not a state. It is run by a militia similar to our beloved Lebanon. Our airport and port are controlled and operated by HA, a sectarian militia.
10 years
There has to be a monetary compensation to MEA and the passengers on board the flight . Including an official apology for the brat and from the Iraqi state . This is a matter of sovereignty .if even Iraqis are pissing on us then the country is in a much worse state than what we see
10 years
As the Iraqi P.M. stated, this even is by far more hurtful to Iraq's image than anything else. MEA must be compensated,and the 71 passengers on board that flight, and the passengers at Baghdad airport who were supposed to take that flight back to Beirut.
10 years
No different then Iran's militia closing the roads to the airport...
10 years
Saddam would have punished them in the best way.
10 years
Sure, I want to see what would have happened if Saddam's son was not able to board this flight.
10 years
What a circus
Very good move from the Iraqis authorities, most commendable indeed, but I still feel that it runs short of a full solution. Now the Iraqis should apologize to MEA, the Lebanese state, and last but certainly not least, to compensate our national carrier and the passengers fully. The image of the Iraqis state will remain stained and tarnished until it can prove its capacity to assuage the hurt it has caused MEA and its passengers.