Baghdad – Baghdad”s airport reopened Monday amid a contract dispute between a British security firm and the Iraqi government that led to a 48-hour shutdown.
Global Strategies Group temporarily suspended its management of security operations at the airport Friday, saying there
were "unresolved commercial issues" with Iraq”s Transport Ministry. About 500 Global employees handle security at Baghdad”s airport.
Commercial flights resumed Monday and an Iraqi Airways plane from Jordan landed at the airport at 9:30 a.m. (0530 GMT), said Tark al-Najar, an airline spokesman.
London-based GSG and the previous Iraqi government, which left office on April 28, had reached an oral financial agreement, Transport Minister Salam al-Maliki said Sunday.
He added that the company demanded a new contract and demanded higher amounts of money as a condition to return.
Al-Maliki declined to provide further details about the
negotiations.
In London, Paul Simington, director of Middle East operations for Global Strategies Group, said the company wanted to meet with al-Maliki, adding that the minister had failed to turn up at previous arranged meetings.
He also denied that the company was trying to charge higher amounts of money. "That is a completely false statement, in fact we have reduced our prices," he told The Associated Press, speaking by phone from Dubai.