Germany’s transport ministry Monday notified Mahan Air, Iran’s second largest carrier, to halt flights to German cities as part of Berlin’s sanctions over Tehran-linked practices to muzzle dissent in the EU bloc. The German foreign ministry’s spokesman Christofer Burger on his part said at a press conference that the call for suspension is in the scope of protecting Germany’s “foreign and security policy interests”, The New Arab reports. “Mahan Air has flown terrorists, weapons, equipment, and funds to international locations to support Iranian terrorist proxy groups,” the US diplomat said in a statement, adding that it had been used “to support the Assad regime in Syria”. “But we have always said that destabilizing activity by Iran in the (Middle East) region as well as Iran’s ballistic missile program are unacceptable,” the German foreign ministry’s spokesman said. “On top of that, there are recent indications regarding the activities of Iran’s secret services within EU states.”

Source: The North Africa Journal January 22, 2019 15:39 UTC