Iran diplomacy intensifies at UN as Hormuz crisis keeps pressure on region

For Iranians visiting relatives abroad, returning home has become increasingly uncertain. For those living outside the country, reaching parents, children and other loved ones in Iran is becoming just as difficult.

The disruption has left travelers trying to determine which flights are still operating, whether future bookings can be relied upon and what alternatives remain if they cannot fly.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that US sanctions would effectively shut Iranian airlines out of international operations from September 23, warning foreign companies against providing them with fuel, ground services or ticket sales.

“All the Iranian airlines will be shut down around the world,” Bessent told CNBC. “If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets, or you will be knocked out of the dollar system.”

The warning does not itself close foreign airspace to Iranian aircraft, but raises the risk of US penalties for companies and financial institutions that continue doing business with sanctioned carriers. The practical impact will depend on how governments, airports and service providers respond.

Iran International contacted multiple international airlines and four travel agencies specializing in travel to Iran to establish what options remain for passengers.

Which flights are still available?

Options are increasingly limited and can change at short notice.

Turkish Airlines has suspended all flights to Iran until at least March 2027, a company representative told Iran International by phone, adding that no services are currently scheduled before then and there is no guarantee they will resume in March.

Emirates said it is no longer operating flights to Tehran, while Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines confirmed that flights to and from Iran are suspended until at least October 24, 2026.

Both Lufthansa and Austrian Airlines said they were monitoring the situation and could not guarantee that flights would resume after that date.

Qatar Airways told Iran International that its flights to Iran are currently suspended because of airspace restrictions. Services are tentatively scheduled to resume on November 29, but the airline said that date could change depending on conditions.

Four travel agencies specializing in Iran travel said they were also unable to book operating services on airlines from Russia, China and Oman, as well as Turkey’s Pegasus Airlines and carriers serving routes from Armenia, at the time they spoke to Iran International.

One agency said it had seen Pegasus continue to accept some bookings for Iran routes that were later cancelled at short notice, forcing passengers to change their travel plans.

Iran International found some Pegasus itineraries between Turkey and Iran displayed on booking platforms from November 29, but the listings do not guarantee that the flights will operate.

Iran also did not appear as a destination option in searches on Flydubai’s or Expedia’s booking systems. Other routes checked by Iran International produced no available itineraries before March 2027.

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Those searches provide only a snapshot of what booking platforms were displaying at the time and do not establish when international services will resume or whether other routes may remain available.

How are people getting to and from Iran?

The travel agencies, which requested anonymity, said their businesses had been severely affected as passengers looked for alternatives to flying directly into Iran.

They said some travelers arriving from Western countries were flying to Turkey and then taking a roughly 17-hour bus journey to Van, near the Iranian border.

From there, travelers could cross into Iran and continue by road. The agencies estimated that reaching Tehran from Van could take another 16 to 17 hours by bus or car.

That can mean more than 30 hours on the road alone, excluding the initial flight, border crossings and waiting times.

The agencies said Mahan Air had already stopped operating from Turkish airports after losing access to ground-handling services.

The disruption followed the US Treasury’s September 8 sanctions package, which designated all Iranian airlines and also targeted three Turkey-based companies accused of providing services to Mahan Air. Treasury described the 27 sanctioned carriers as Iran’s remaining airlines not already covered by US sanctions.

Other Iranian carriers were still operating through Turkish airports as of September 21, the agencies said, but they expected those services to come under increasing pressure after September 23 as companies assessed the risk of continuing to service sanctioned aircraft.

What changes on September 23?

The US Treasury sanctioned 36 targets connected to Iran’s aviation sector on September 8, including 27 Iranian airlines. Treasury accused the aviation sector of being used to transport weapons, military personnel and illicit cargo.

Bessent said on September 21 that the restrictions would effectively shut Iranian airlines out of international operations from September 23 by targeting the foreign services they rely on.

The sanctions do not automatically prohibit Iranian aircraft from entering every country or close foreign airspace to them. But airlines need access to airports, fuel, ground handling, ticketing, banking and other services to operate internationally, giving Washington significant leverage over their ability to continue flying abroad.

Some countries have already moved to restrict Iranian carriers.

Flights by US-sanctioned Iranian airlines to Georgia stopped from September 21 after the affected carriers operated their final services the previous day, according to Georgian media. Georgia’s Civil Aviation Agency had earlier said it takes US and European sanctions mechanisms into account when granting foreign airlines access to its aviation market.

Iraq is moving even earlier than Bessent’s September 23 deadline. Two Iraqi government sources told AFP that Baghdad would suspend flights operated by Iranian airlines from dawn on Tuesday, September 22.

One official said Iraq would implement the restriction in accordance with the US Treasury decision and warned that countries failing to comply risked sanctions. A second source confirmed the decision.

The suspension could particularly affect Shiite pilgrims travelling from Iran to the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala, as well as families and other passengers who rely on flights between the two countries.

For travelers, the central problem is that schedules displayed today may offer little certainty about what will actually operate in the coming weeks. With foreign airlines withdrawing and Iranian carriers facing new barriers abroad, travelling both into and out of Iran is increasingly dependent on a shrinking number of routes — or long overland journeys through neighboring countries.

The warnings came as President Masoud Pezeshkian prepared to travel to New York for the UN General Assembly and regional mediators stepped up contacts with both sides.

Iran would change the “geography of the war” if it came under renewed attack, Revolutionary Guards spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi said Monday, warning that Tehran would also use weapons it has not yet deployed and strike new targets.

“If a new aggression occurs, we will certainly change the weaponry and the geography of the war,” Mohebbi said.

“We will introduce new weapons with new capabilities into the battlefield, and the world will be astonished,” he added.

Mohebbi said Iran was prepared for a prolonged conflict and that its targets in another round would not necessarily be the same as before.

Iran’s armed forces also pledged in a joint statement to make the United States, Israel and their allies “taste the bitterness of further defeats,” while Army Commander Amir Hatami said the military remained on full alert.

New ship attacks in Hormuz

The threat came with tensions still high around the Strait of Hormuz, where two tankers were hit in separate incidents within hours on Monday.

An inbound tanker was struck by an unknown projectile, leaving two crew members with minor injuries, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. The vessel remained under its own power and continued toward its next port.

UKMTO later reported that an LPG tanker leaving the strait had been hit by debris from unknown projectiles. Its crew was safe and no environmental damage was reported. Authorities were investigating both incidents.

Shipping through Hormuz remains far below pre-war levels. Seventeen commodity vessels crossed the waterway over the weekend, down from 37 a week earlier, according to shipping data cited by Reuters. Before the war, about 125 large commercial vessels typically transited the strait each day.

Qatar seeks short-term deal to revive talks

Qatar, meanwhile, said mediators were exchanging proposals between Iran and the United States in an effort to secure a short-term agreement that could reopen negotiations.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari said Qatari mediators had been discussing proposals for nearly two weeks and traveling between capitals in search of a formula acceptable to both sides. Doha had also received assurances from US officials that Washington wanted an agreement, he said.

Pakistan has also remained involved in efforts to reduce tensions. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met his Iranian counterpart Eskandar Momeni in Tehran on Monday, weeks after Naqvi and Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir visited Iran as part of Islamabad’s mediation efforts.

Iranian media said the latest visit was focused on bilateral relations and that Naqvi was not carrying a US message. Iran’s Foreign Ministry had earlier said it was unaware of any specific proposal being brought by the Pakistani minister.

Pezeshkian is due to leave for New York on Tuesday for the UN General Assembly, where the Iran-US conflict is expected to feature prominently in diplomatic contacts.

Washington tightens pressure

Washington showed no sign Monday of easing economic pressure while those contacts continued.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iranian airlines would effectively be shut out of international operations from September 23 by threatening sanctions against airports and companies that provide them with fuel, landing services or ticket sales.

“If they land, you cannot provide them with fuel, you cannot provide them with landing services, you cannot sell them tickets, or you will be knocked out of the dollar system,” Bessent told CNBC.

The effects were already spreading. Turkish Airlines told Iran International it had suspended all flights to Iran until at least March 2027, while Iraqi government sources said Baghdad would stop Iranian airlines from operating in the country in line with the US measures.

Pezeshkian’s arrival in New York on Tuesday will give mediators another opportunity to test whether the proposals being exchanged can produce a path back to negotiations. The US airline measures are due to take effect the following day.

Some lawmakers, meanwhile, raised the prospect of withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and changing the country’s nuclear-weapons policy.

The developments highlighted the competing signals coming from Tehran as President Donald Trump’s administration weighed its next move in the nearly seven-month war. Trump returned to the White House from Camp David on Saturday evening, a day earlier than scheduled, without an official explanation.

Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military command said it had received information that Washington, with approval from some regional countries, was preparing at a meeting in Europe to resume action against Iran.

“Every US base and interest in the region, without restriction or consideration, will be targeted by sustained, effective and painful attacks,” the command said.

It also warned that regional states supporting an American attack would be treated as participants and “could no longer expect restraint or leniency from Iran’s powerful armed forces.”

US diplomatic missions in nine Middle Eastern countries have meanwhile urged Americans to exercise heightened vigilance, warning of possible rapid escalation, flight cancellations and airspace closures. The alerts said Iran and Tehran-aligned groups could target US interests or locations associated with Americans.

The US military has also said it is strengthening regional air defenses, forming a coalition attack-drone unit and working with partners to keep the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters open.

Iranian officials responded with renewed assertions of control over the strategic waterway. IRGC deputy commander Mostafa Izadi said the strait remained under the control of Iran’s armed forces, while lawmaker Mohsen Zanganeh said restrictions there could impose significant economic pressure on the United States and other countries.

“The Strait of Hormuz is in Iran’s hands,” Zanganeh said, arguing that disruption would raise energy and production costs in East Asia and affect US technology companies with manufacturing operations there.

Against the military threats, Ghalibaf rejected the idea that Iran must choose between war and diplomacy.

“We must fight rationally and forcefully, and negotiate at the appropriate time with authority and reason,” he told a virtual session of parliament on Sunday.

Ghalibaf criticized two positions within Iran’s political establishment. He said one advocated war without presenting a credible path toward ending it and rejected diplomacy at the risk of drawing Iran into an open-ended conflict. The other, he said, underestimated the country’s capabilities and promoted accepting the adversary’s unilateral demands.

The first approach would keep Iran in a state of permanent crisis, while the second would sacrifice national resources and dignity, Ghalibaf said.

His remarks followed comments by Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei, who said Tehran had sent Washington seven conditions for renewed negotiations. Rezaei told Al Jazeera that Iran was seeking an end to the war on all fronts, the release of frozen Iranian assets and an end to the US naval blockade.

Rezaei said Qatar had conveyed Iran’s terms and Tehran was awaiting Trump’s response. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan also said Turkey and other countries had presented new proposals to Washington and Tehran.

The diplomatic signals were accompanied by increasingly explicit statements by lawmakers about Iran’s nuclear policy.

Ebrahim Azizi, chairman of parliament’s national security committee, said renewed negotiations with the United States would be meaningless and warned that Iran could reconsider its NPT membership if remaining in the treaty no longer served its national interests.

Azizi also threatened the International Atomic Energy Agency with “serious and regrettable responses” if it continued what he described as one-sided conduct.

Another lawmaker, Hosseinali Hajideligani, said remaining in the NPT brought Iran nothing but harm and urged parliament’s leadership to consider an urgent motion submitted by a group of lawmakers seeking withdrawal from the treaty.

“It is in our interest to withdraw from the NPT,” he said.

Tehran representative Kamran Ghazanfari went further, raising the possibility of a change in the country’s position on nuclear weapons if the survival of the Islamic Republic came under serious threat.

“If conditions change in such a way that we feel the existence of the Islamic Republic is seriously threatened, the leadership could take a position on nuclear weapons,” Ghazanfari said.

The comments stopped short of announcing a policy change. Rezaei said Saturday that Tehran remained committed to slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s fatwa prohibiting nuclear weapons and had not altered its doctrine, while adding: “We do not know what will happen in the future.”

The growing debate nevertheless marked a sharper public challenge to Iran’s longstanding declared nuclear position at a moment when military threats, maritime pressure and mediated diplomatic efforts were unfolding simultaneously.

“The United States, if it wants to extricate itself from the predicament it has created, must accept Iran’s rights and conditions,” Rezaei wrote on X, saying the seven demands had been communicated to Washington.

He did not spell out all seven in the post. Earlier Saturday, however, Rezaei told Al Jazeera that Tehran was demanding an end to the war “on all fronts,” the release of frozen Iranian assets and an end to the US naval blockade as conditions for a settlement.

He said a Qatari mediator had conveyed Iran’s terms to Washington and that Tehran was awaiting Trump’s response.

Iran and the United States have remained engaged in indirect diplomacy throughout months of fighting and since the collapse of the Islamabad memorandum of understanding.

The memorandum, signed in June after Pakistan-hosted talks, was intended to halt the fighting and pave the way for a broader agreement. Both sides later accused the other of violations, and it expired in August without producing a lasting settlement.

Trump told Axios on Thursday that he had a “big decision” coming over whether to resume large-scale attacks on Iran, while saying Tehran remained in direct contact with Washington and wanted a deal. He is due to discuss the war with leaders of six Persian Gulf states in New York next week.

Pakistan, another key intermediary, is sending Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi to Tehran on Sunday. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the visit was focused on bilateral ties and previous agreements between the two countries and that he was not aware of any specific US message or proposal due to be conveyed.

Baghaei acknowledged Pakistan’s continuing mediation role, saying it was natural for Islamabad to pursue diplomatic efforts, but said he had no information about any particular initiative attached to the visit.

Rezaei meanwhile struck a harder military tone, saying Iran had changed its strategy toward Washington after the United States withdrew from the memorandum. He said Tehran had recently tested an anti-ship missile near a US aircraft carrier and claimed Iran was better prepared to confront American air attacks after identifying weaknesses in the US military.

Nuclear pressure

On nuclear policy, Rezaei said Tehran remained committed to the late supreme leader’s fatwa against nuclear weapons and had not changed its nuclear doctrine, though he added that “we do not know what will happen in the future.”

He said Israeli and US actions already provided grounds for Iran to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), but Tehran had not made such a decision and any move would depend on Washington’s conduct.

Last month, Rezaei suggested Tehran could reconsider its longstanding rejection of nuclear weapons, arguing that US attacks on Iran have strengthened the case for acquiring an atomic bomb as a deterrent.

Rezaei told the state TV Washington had demonstrated that adherence to the global nuclear non-proliferation system offered countries little protection from military attack.

Saudi-Yemen escalation

In his Saturday interview, Rezaei also said Iran wanted the fighting between Saudi Arabia and Yemen to end and believed the Yemeni side also sought an agreement with Riyadh.

Hours earlier, an air attack struck a jet-fuel storage facility at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport, marking the first direct assault on the Saudi capital in months, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The Houthis later claimed two operations using missiles and drones, saying they struck “sensitive and important” targets in Riyadh and Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu. Military spokesman Yahya Saree did not explicitly identify the airport as a target.

The judiciary's news agency, Mizan, identified him as Hossein Pedaran and said he had been convicted of espionage and intelligence cooperation with Israel and sentenced to death, with the sentence upheld by the Supreme Court. He had been arrested in Isfahan on charges related to the war.

Mizan published a long account of what it described as Pedaran's confessions. According to that account, he first messaged the CIA offering to cooperate and received no reply, then contacted Mossad and was answered days later by an officer who introduced himself as "Ben" using a Dutch WhatsApp number.

The agency said he sent encrypted reports on military facilities and on staff who worked at them, including personal details and their spouses' phone numbers, used numerous SIM cards registered to others, and was given a remote-control device capable of taking hidden photographs.

It said he was paid in euros collected from a magnetic box behind a guardrail near a Tehran bridge and, on another occasion, from a coffee shop bathroom, and that a notebook on missile subjects marked "highly confidential" was found at his home.

Mizan said Pedaran had cut contact before the war and tried to reach Mossad again by Telegram once it began, and was arrested. It said he had a lawyer, that a forensic examination found no impairment of his judgment, and that the court held his information had contributed to strikes in which personnel were killed or wounded.

None of these claims can be independently verified, and Mizan did not provide any evidence for the allegations.

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