April 24- Najaf Airport reopened on Thursday following a two-week closure of the facility in the wake of Al-Qaeda threats. “The head of Iraq’s civil aviation and the ministry of transport decided from today to reopen the airport to internal and international flights, after all security measures were taken to prevent Al-Qaeda attacking the Shiite shrines with aircraft,” Provincial Councillor Khaled al-Jashami said.
Following the opening of airspace, a Gulf Air flight was scheduled to fly on Thursday, and a flight with the Jordanian airline Eagle Aviation was slated to arrive on Friday, he added. The airport was closed on April 7, following security concerns, said a transport ministry official.
Najaf airport, 150 kilometres (90 miles) south of the Iraqi capital, has been receiving around 800 passengers daily, mostly pilgrims from Bahrain and Iran, since it opened to civilian flights in July 2008.
