Security concerns prompt Washington to tighten protection measures for al-Zaidi
Tight security measures imposed to protect Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi during his visit to Washington caused flight operations to be suspended for hours at Ronald Reagan Airport, and hundreds of flights to be canceled or delayed.
A report by the American network “CBS News”, translated by Shafaq News Agency, stated that commercial flights stopped taking off and landing at the airport on Tuesday, from eleven o’clock in the morning until about three o’clock in the afternoon Washington time, due to security arrangements related to the movements of the Iraqi Prime Minister in the American capital.
The restrictions led to the delay of more than 300 flights and the cancellation of at least 126 others, according to data from FlightAware, a website specializing in tracking air traffic, amid cascading repercussions that affected the flight schedule in one of the busiest and most tightly controlled airspaces in the United States.
A senior U.S. administration official said the White House and the Federal Aviation Administration exchanged updates on al-Zaidi’s movements in an effort to limit the impact of security measures, and authorities allowed some planes that were waiting in the air to land, and others that were on the ground to take off.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Department of Transportation declined to comment on the reasons for the disruptions or the nature of the security threats that prompted the flight suspensions.
According to the report, al-Zaidi’s convoy left the White House for the Pentagon at 1:30 PM, later than expected, while a security helicopter flew over the convoy as it passed through the airspace near the airport.
US President Donald Trump had received al-Zaidi at the White House to discuss the future of relations between Iraq and the United States, in the Iraqi prime minister’s first visit to Washington since taking office last May.
Trump extended his meeting with al-Zaidi and extended an unscheduled invitation for lunch, saying the meeting showed a “great rapport” between them, which led to an adjustment in the Iraqi delegation’s schedule and a delay in their move to the Pentagon.
The heightened security measures come amid the ongoing four-month-long US-Iranian war, fears that Iran or its affiliates might carry out operations inside the United States, as well as increased security warnings following attempts to assassinate President Trump, according to the report.
The airspace surrounding Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport has been under strict restrictions since the 2025 mid-air collision between an American Airlines passenger plane and a Black Hawk military helicopter, which killed 67 people and led to new rules on helicopter routes near the airport and the Pentagon.
Shafaq.com