عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

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
TT
TT

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.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Netanyahu Vows to Eliminate Iran Threat ‘Once and for All’

10 November 2026, Israel, Jerusalem: Caretaker Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech on the sidelines of the opening session of the new Knesset. (dpa)
10 November 2026, Israel, Jerusalem: Caretaker Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech on the sidelines of the opening session of the new Knesset. (dpa)
TT
TT

Netanyahu Vows to Eliminate Iran Threat ‘Once and for All’

10 November 2026, Israel, Jerusalem: Caretaker Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech on the sidelines of the opening session of the new Knesset. (dpa)
10 November 2026, Israel, Jerusalem: Caretaker Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers a speech on the sidelines of the opening session of the new Knesset. (dpa)

Israel's caretaker prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday reiterated his calls for a national unity government with his opponent Gadi Eisenkot, as well as his vow to eliminate the threat from Iran.

A meeting with Eisenkot on Thursday "only strengthened the conviction that it is essential to form a national unity government" to guarantee Israel's security, Netanyahu said in a video statement, adding that such a government could "eliminate the Iranian threat once and for all".

World

Ukraine’s Zelenskiy Escalates Criticism of SpaceX Over Speed Caps

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds a press briefing in Copenhagen November 10, 2026. (AFP)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds a press briefing in Copenhagen November 10, 2026. (AFP)
TT
TT

Ukraine’s Zelenskiy Escalates Criticism of SpaceX Over Speed Caps

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds a press briefing in Copenhagen November 10, 2026. (AFP)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy holds a press briefing in Copenhagen November 10, 2026. (AFP)

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ‌escalated his criticism of SpaceX on Saturday, saying speed restrictions on its military-grade Starshield satellite terminals had dangerous political implications and undermined critical air defenses.

Zelenskiy said Starshield terminals operating in temporarily Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine had been limited to a maximum speed of 161 kph for the past five days, hampering Ukraine's military capabilities.

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry has raised the issue with SpaceX at the ‌institutional level, ‌Zelenskiy said.

"The restrictions have now ‌been ⁠in place for ⁠five days. They say it is some kind of technical issue. We do not believe that is the case," Zelenskiy told reporters in remarks released by his office on Saturday.

"If you impose restrictions there, you are already partially recognizing the temporarily ⁠occupied territories as not ours. And ‌that is why I ‌believe we have the right to raise this ‌issue and restore the speed – so that there ‌are no restrictions at all."

Zelenskiy said the speed restrictions made it more difficult for Ukrainian air defense units to intercept Russian jet-powered drones and made Ukrainian cities ‌more vulnerable. He said he had ordered his top military and foreign ministry ⁠officials ⁠to address the issue and seek clarification.

SpaceX has pushed back against the allegations, denying that it introduced new restrictions or made any changes to its satellite operations.

It is the second such outage in recent weeks. In mid-October, Ukrainian officials said that SpaceX limited the speed of Starlink and its Starshield communication systems to about 160 kph (100 mph) amid tensions with US President Donald Trump's administration over Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries. Service was then restored on October 24.

World

UN Official Urges Iran, US to Let Fertilizers Through Hormuz Strait

Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services), and coordinator of the UN Strait of Hormuz Task Force established by the UN Secretary-General, speaks during an interview with AFP on the sidelines of the 31st United Climate Change Conference (COP31), at the media center located on the Antalya Expo Center in Antalya on November 14, 2026. (AFP)
Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services), and coordinator of the UN Strait of Hormuz Task Force established by the UN Secretary-General, speaks during an interview with AFP on the sidelines of the 31st United Climate Change Conference (COP31), at the media center located on the Antalya Expo Center in Antalya on November 14, 2026. (AFP)
TT
TT

UN Official Urges Iran, US to Let Fertilizers Through Hormuz Strait

Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services), and coordinator of the UN Strait of Hormuz Task Force established by the UN Secretary-General, speaks during an interview with AFP on the sidelines of the 31st United Climate Change Conference (COP31), at the media center located on the Antalya Expo Center in Antalya on November 14, 2026. (AFP)
Jorge Moreira da Silva, Executive Director of UNOPS (United Nations Office for Project Services), and coordinator of the UN Strait of Hormuz Task Force established by the UN Secretary-General, speaks during an interview with AFP on the sidelines of the 31st United Climate Change Conference (COP31), at the media center located on the Antalya Expo Center in Antalya on November 14, 2026. (AFP)

Iran and the United States should "immediately" allow fertilizer shipments through the Strait of Hormuz to ease the crisis in some of the most vulnerable countries, a senior UN official said Saturday.

Jorge Moreira da Silva, head of the UN Office for Project Services, told the COP31 climate talks in the Turkish resort city of Antalya that the lack of fertilizers could push millions into poverty.

The Iranian blockade of the vital waterway, which started after the joint US-Israeli attack against Iran in late February, has choked shipping in the region and beyond. The US blockade of Iranian ports has further complicated matters.

While Iran and the United States are still trying to negotiate an end to the conflict, Moreira da Silva said he had the same message for both countries.

"They should continue their negotiations about the comprehensive deal -- but that deal should not avoid an immediate, exceptional, limited, and time-bound solution for the fertilizers," he said.

"Basically, what we need is five vessels a day with fertilizers," he added.

- Millions at risk -

Moreira da Silva heads up the UN task force dedicated to facilitating the safe passage of fertilizers during the crisis.

Before the conflict, a third of the world's fertilizers passed through the Strait of Hormuz, and since the blockades, their prices had risen by 30 percent, he said.

"But what I think is not sufficiently recognized is the disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable countries," he added.

Sudan's finance minister recently told him that the price of food there had doubled in six months, he added. In Nepal, they had told him that farmers could no longer afford to buy fertilizers.

"So, it's very important that we are aware that countries such as Mozambique, Kenya, Sudan, Somalia, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka are facing very significant impact."

The effects of this shortage could be catastrophic, he warned.

"If we continue missing the planting seasons in different parts of the world we may have 45 million people facing severe and acute food insecurity," he said.

"We may have 30 million people being forced into poverty."

The UN had a system ready to get fertilizer shipments moving within seven to 10 days, he said.