Lufthansa Cancels Flights to and from Tel Aviv Through Aug 8

Planes stand on the tarmac during a pilots strike of German airline Lufthansa at Frankfurt airport, Germany, November 23, 2016. (Reuters)
Planes stand on the tarmac during a pilots strike of German airline Lufthansa at Frankfurt airport, Germany, November 23, 2016. (Reuters)
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Lufthansa Cancels Flights to and from Tel Aviv Through Aug 8

Planes stand on the tarmac during a pilots strike of German airline Lufthansa at Frankfurt airport, Germany, November 23, 2016. (Reuters)
Planes stand on the tarmac during a pilots strike of German airline Lufthansa at Frankfurt airport, Germany, November 23, 2016. (Reuters)

Lufthansa Group has cancelled all its passenger and cargo flights to and from Tel Aviv with immediate effect through Aug. 8, a spokesperson for the German airline said on Thursday.

"The reason for this is the current development in the region," the spokesperson added, Reuters reported.

The airline group has also extended a halt on its flights to and from the Lebanese capital Beirut through Aug. 12, according to the spokesperson.

A number of airlines have cancelled or suspended flights as Lebanon braces for retaliation from Israel since a strike on Saturday in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights killed 12 children and teenagers. Hezbollah has denied blame.



Russian Drone Attack Damages Chornobyl Nuclear Plant’s Shelter, Zelenskiy Says

 A memorial to victims and the original sarcophagus covering the destroyed Chornobyl reactor. (AFP)
A memorial to victims and the original sarcophagus covering the destroyed Chornobyl reactor. (AFP)
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Russian Drone Attack Damages Chornobyl Nuclear Plant’s Shelter, Zelenskiy Says

 A memorial to victims and the original sarcophagus covering the destroyed Chornobyl reactor. (AFP)
A memorial to victims and the original sarcophagus covering the destroyed Chornobyl reactor. (AFP)

A Russian drone attack caused significant damage to the radiation shelter of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant overnight, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday.

Chornobyl was the site of the world's worst civil nuclear catastrophe when one of its four reactors exploded in 1986. That reactor is now enveloped by a protective shelter, known as a sarcophagus, to contain the lingering radiation.

The Russian drone struck the shelter of the destroyed power unit at the plant, causing a fire that has since been extinguished, he said.

"As of now, radiation levels have not increased and are being constantly monitored," Zelenskiy said, adding that an initial assessment had found significant damage.

"The only country in the world that attacks such sites, occupies nuclear power plants, and wages war without any regard for the consequences is today’s Russia," he said.