ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi on Friday announced that Iraq has reached an agreement to allow Iranian airlines, bar Mahan Air, to operate 40 flights to and from Najaf International Airport.

Washington in late September announced that it would impose sanctions on global companies doing business with Iranian airlines after September 23, in a move aimed at grounding the Islamic republic’s entire civilian fleet worldwide.

Efforts by the Iraqi government to secure an exemption from the restrictions “have resulted in an agreement allowing Iranian airlines–with the exception of Mahan Air–to operate 40 daily flights to and from Najaf Al-Ashraf International Airport,” Zaidi’s office said in a statement.

Zaidi appreciated “the positive response shown by the US government to Iraq's efforts and its cooperation in granting the necessary exemption,” according to the statement.

The development comes after Washington on Tuesday granted Iraqi Airways a one-month sanctions waiver for Iranian flights to operate to and from Najaf International Airport.

The US Treasury Department has previously accused Mahan Air of playing “a central role in enabling the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC),” despite the airline presenting itself “as a civilian carrier.”

In an article published in late July, the department announced sanctions on six entities that allegedly assisted Mahan Air, saying the airline provides “travel services for IRGC‑Qods Force personnel, facilitating military training, and supporting Iran’s procurement and transport of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems and weapons.”

The suspension of Iranian flights to and from several Iraqi airports has drawn the ire of several political actors and armed groups, including Kataib Hezbollah, one of the strongest pro-Iran armed groups.