Iran bars Maliki plane from airspace

Baghdad: Iran has denied airspace entry to a plane carrying Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki, forcing it to land in Dubai, a senior adviser said on Sunday.

Sadiq Al Rikabi, who was with Maliki on the trip to Japan and South Korea, said the plane entered Iranian airspace at about 8:30 pm on Saturday.

"Suddenly the Iranian aviation authorities ordered the pilot to go back," Rikabi said.

"We were obliged to fly to Dubai where we stayed for more than three hours to file a new [flight] plan," he said by telephone from Bangkok.

Rikabi said it was unclear why Iran had barred Maliki's plane from crossing its territory.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini implied Maliki's plane may have faced an issue over permission to fly across Iran but said it was not unusual.