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Airlines Suspend Flights as Middle East Tensions Rise

The empty arrival hall at the The Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon, 03 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
The empty arrival hall at the The Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon, 03 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
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Airlines Suspend Flights as Middle East Tensions Rise

The empty arrival hall at the The Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon, 03 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH
The empty arrival hall at the The Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, in Beirut, Lebanon, 03 October 2024. EPA/WAEL HAMZEH

Concerns over a wider conflict in the Middle East have prompted international airlines to suspend flights to the region or to avoid affected air space.
Below are some of the airlines that have adjusted services to and from the region:
AEGEAN AIRLINES The Greek airline canceled flights to and from Beirut until Nov. 6 and to and from Tel Aviv until Nov. 5.
AIRBALTIC Latvia's airBaltic canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv until Oct. 31.
AIR ALGERIE The Algerian airline suspended flights to and from Lebanon until further notice.
AIR EUROPA The Spanish airline canceled flights to Tel Aviv until Oct. 20.
AIR FRANCE-KLM Air France extended its suspension of Paris-Tel Aviv flights until Oct. 22 and Paris-Beirut flights until Oct. 26. KLM extended the suspension of flights to Tel Aviv until the end of this year at least. The Franco-Dutch group's low-cost unit Transavia canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv, Amman and Beirut until end-March.
AIR INDIA The Indian flag carrier suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv until further notice.
BULGARIA AIR The Bulgarian carrier canceled flights to and from Israel until Oct. 31.
CATHAY PACIFIC Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific canceled flights to Tel Aviv until Oct. 25, 2025.
DELTA AIR LINES The US carrier paused flights between New York and Tel Aviv through March 2025.
EASYJET The UK budget airline stopped flying to and from Tel Aviv in April and will resume flights on March 30.
EGYPTAIR The Egyptian carrier on Sept. 24 suspended flights to Beirut until "the situation stabilizes".
EMIRATES UAE's state-owned airline canceled flights to Beirut through Oct. 31 and flights to Baghdad and Tehran until Oct. 23. Basra flights were set to resume from Oct. 17.
ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES The Ethiopian carrier suspended flights to Beirut until further notice, it said in a Facebook post on Oct. 4.
FLYDUBAI The Emirati airline suspended Dubai-Beirut flights until Oct. 31, a flydubai spokesperson said.
IAG IAG-owned British Airways canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv through Oct. 26.
IAG's low-cost airline Iberia Express canceled flights to Tel Aviv until Oct. 31, while Vueling canceled operations to Tel Aviv until Jan. 12 and to Amman until further notice.
IRAN AIR The Iranian airline canceled Beirut flights until further notice.
IRAQI AIRWAYS The Iraqi national carrier suspended flights to Beirut until further notice.
ITA AIRWAYS The Italian carrier extended the suspension of Tel Aviv flights through Nov. 30.
LOT The Polish flag carrier canceled flights to Tel Aviv until Oct. 26, while its first scheduled flight to Beirut is planned for April 1.
LUFTHANSA GROUP The German airline group suspended flights to Tel Aviv and Tehran until Oct. 31 and to Beirut until Nov. 30.
It will not use Iranian and Iraqi airspace until further notice, aside from a corridor used for flights to and from Erbil in Iraqi Kurdistan. Israeli airspace will not be used until Oct. 31.
SunExpress, a joint venture between Lufthansa and Turkish Airlines, suspended flights to Beirut through Dec. 17.
PEGASUS The Turkish airline canceled flights to Beirut until Oct. 28.
QATAR AIRWAYS The Qatari airline temporarily suspended flights to and from Iraq, Iran and Lebanon, while flights to Amman will operate during daylight hours only.
RYANAIR Europe's biggest budget airline canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv until the end of December. Group CEO Michael O'Leary on Oct. 3 said the suspension was likely to be extended until end-March.
SUNDAIR The German airline canceled flights to Beirut from Berlin until Dec. 8, Bremen until March 26, and Muenster/Osnabrueck until March 29.
UNITED AIRLINES The Chicago-based airline suspended flights to Tel Aviv for the foreseeable future.
TAROM Romania's flag carrier extended the suspension of Beirut flights until Oct. 22.
VIRGIN ATLANTIC The UK carrier extended suspension of Tel Aviv flights until end-March.
WIZZ AIR The Hungary-based airline suspended Tel Aviv flights through Jan. 14.

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Erdogan, Barzani Discuss Critical Files in Ankara

Erdogan and Barzani during their talks in Ankara on Wednesday (Turkish Presidency)
Erdogan and Barzani during their talks in Ankara on Wednesday (Turkish Presidency)
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Erdogan, Barzani Discuss Critical Files in Ankara

Erdogan and Barzani during their talks in Ankara on Wednesday (Turkish Presidency)
Erdogan and Barzani during their talks in Ankara on Wednesday (Turkish Presidency)

The President of Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, Nechirvan Barzani, visited Türkiye at a critical time for both Ankara and Erbil, amid regional tensions, particularly with Israel expanding the scope of war in the region.
Before meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Barzani held discussions with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin.
According to a statement from the Turkish Presidency’s Directorate of Communications, the meeting between Erdogan and Barzani at the presidential palace on Wednesday covered relations between Ankara and Erbil, regional security issues, and energy concerns.
Discussions also touched on Türkiye’s relations with Baghdad and Erbil, as well as regional developments amid the Israeli escalation and the potential impact of the war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon on Iraq and other countries.
Barzani’s visit to the Turkish capital also comes amid growing signals of a new initiative to resolve the Kurdish issue in Türkiye. The visit precedes the upcoming parliamentary elections in Iraq’s Kurdistan Region, scheduled for this Sunday, after being postponed for two years.
The Turkish presidency’s statement indicated that Erdogan expressed hope for peaceful and inclusive elections and, in discussing the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza and its spillover into Lebanon, warned of the risk that Israeli aggression could lead to a broader regional war. He emphasized his country’s commitment to regional stability and security and praised the Iraqi authorities’ efforts to keep the country out of the conflict.
Türkiye views Iraq’s stability as crucial for the future of the region and aims to improve relations with Baghdad. Ankara places great importance on resolving issues between the central government in Baghdad and the Erbil government, with which it has built close ties, particularly in security, economy, and energy.
According to Turkish sources speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, these matters were thoroughly discussed during Barzani’s meetings with Turkish foreign and intelligence officials, as well as in his meeting with Erdogan. Security cooperation, particularly in combating the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), was a priority during Barzani’s talks in Ankara.
Ankara and Baghdad have taken significant steps in their “war on terrorism” over the past year through rounds of security and economic talks, culminating in Erdogan’s visit to Baghdad in April. They agreed to collaborate against PKK elements in northern Iraq. This cooperation evolved in August into an agreement to establish a military coordination center in Baghdad and use the Bashiqa base, long controlled by Turkish forces, as a joint Turkish-Iraqi training center.
One of the key agenda items in talks between Ankara, Erbil, and Baghdad over the past 18 months has been the resumption of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan oil pipeline. The latest developments in this issue were discussed during Erdogan and Barzani’s meeting. Türkiye had previously informed Iraq of its readiness to resume the pipeline’s operations, but ongoing disputes between Baghdad and Erbil have delayed this step.

Barzani’s visit to Ankara also coincided with internal Turkish political signals suggesting the government might initiate a new “peace process” to address the Kurdish issue. These indicators have gained momentum following a historic handshake between the leader of the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), Devlet Bahceli, and members of the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) during the opening of the new legislative year in early October. Erdogan expressed support for this gesture by his coalition partner.
Political analyst Murat Yetkin noted that Barzani’s visit might be linked to this new peace initiative. He pointed out that, on the day Barzani’s visit was announced, Bahceli delivered a message in parliament to the imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, urging him to call on his organization to lay down its arms. This was followed by demands from the HDP co-chair for an end to Ocalan’s 43-month isolation in his prison in western Türkiye.