According to reports, following a claim by a US newspaper that Iran is moving weapons to Syria via Iraqi air space, Prime Minister Nouri Al-Maliki clarified that all items transported through Iraq to Syria were humanitarian goods. Maliki stated, "Iraq does not allow its land or its skies to be a passage for weapons in any direction, and from any source." He added that Iraq was "pushing towards finding a political solution to the Syrian situation... to avoid more bloodshed." Earlier, the Washington Times had reported that Iraq refused "several" US requests to stop Iranian cargo flights bound for Syria, citing an unnamed US official. 1

• 1. “Maliki says Iraq does not allow weapons shipment to Syria,” Mehr News, March 17, 2012, at http://www.mehrnews.com/en/newsdetail.aspx?NewsID=1561802