Iraqi aviation authorities were left stunned after a 10-year-old child boarded an Iran-bound jet on his own from a busy airport in a Shiite shrine city following various security checks.

The international airport in Najaf, south of Baghdad, announced Wednesday that it would examine security after the boy slipped through seven checks and mixed in with vast throngs of travelers.

According to airport manager Hikmat Ahmed, the boy was only apprehended after boarding an Iran Air-chartered flight.

“The plane crew alerted us about him roughly five hours after his arrival at the airport on Monday night,” he said.

“Anyone who failed in their duties will be sanctioned, fired or transferred” after an investigation, the official said.

According to a security source, his parents who live in a district near the airport had informed police of his disappearance.

Iraq’s civil aviation authority said a private firm had since 2019 been in charge of security at Najaf airport, which receives hundreds of thousands of pilgrims a year.

“All legal procedures” would be taken against the company once the investigation has been completed, it said.

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