I wasn't overly concerned but it would be an interesting scenario if a wide bodied pax aircraft did need to descend over Iraq.
I can confirm that the aircraft i flew as pax on did indeed fly over central Iraq and i believe that this is a common practice. In fact when i sit outside my home in Baghdad Airport i often see high level traffic flying straight and level with ACW/Strobe lights on which i now presume to be civil traffic. This is above all the mid level F16 traffic on bombing and recon missions that keep me awake at night.
