Lebanon Partially Reopens Airport after Virus Shutdown

In this March 5, 2020 file photo, workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus outbreak, at the Rafik Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP)
In this March 5, 2020 file photo, workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus outbreak, at the Rafik Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP)
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Lebanon Partially Reopens Airport after Virus Shutdown

In this March 5, 2020 file photo, workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus outbreak, at the Rafik Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP)
In this March 5, 2020 file photo, workers spray disinfectant as a precaution against the coronavirus outbreak, at the Rafik Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon. (AP)

Lebanon’s only international airport has reopened following a more than three-month shutdown as part of the country’s lockdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

The airport will operate at 10% capacity at first, bringing in around 2,000 travelers a day.

The first flight to arrive was Emirates from Dubai. Others scheduled Wednesday are from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, London and Paris.

Lebanon has been hit by an unprecedented economic and financial crisis and the government is hoping that the reopening of the airport will help bring in hard currency to prop up the economy.

Travelers from countries that do not provide PCR tests ahead of boarding will be tested upon arrival in Lebanon at the airline’s expense. Passengers must pay for a second test 72 hours later and will be required to quarantine if they test positive.



Israeli Strike in Syria Kills 5 Soldiers

People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
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Israeli Strike in Syria Kills 5 Soldiers

People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)
People fleeing from Lebanon arrive on the Syrian side of the border with Lebanon in Jdeidat Yabus in southwestern Syria on September 25, 2024. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP)

An overnight Israeli airstrike on a military site in the area of Kfar Yabous in Syria near the border with Lebanon killed five Syrian army soldiers and injured another, Syrian state news agency SANA reported Friday, citing an unnamed military official.

Israel's military did not immediately acknowledge the strike. Israel regularly targets military sites in Syria and facilities linked to Iran and the Lebanon’s Hezbollah but rarely acknowledges them.

Those strikes have become more frequent as Hezbollah has exchanged fire with Israeli forces for the past 11 months against the backdrop of Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

Tens of thousands of Lebanese and Syrians have fled across the border from Lebanon into Syria since the beginning of the week amid intense Israeli bombardment that Israel says is targeting Hezbollah fighters and weapons. The strikes have killed an estimated 700 people to date, including at least 150 women and children.