Merkel lands late in India after Iran blocks plane

Iran temporarily withdrew flyover rights for the plane carrying German Chancellor Angela Merkel to India on Tuesday, forcing it to circle over Turkey for two hours before the rights were restored and she could land in New Delhi.

"An unusual start to the India trip," Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert wrote on his Twitter account. "Iran temporarily denied flyover rights for the Chancellor's plane. A late landing in Delhi." (Reuters)