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
20

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.



Denmark to Host Meeting on Arctic Security

Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen walks on the day of the meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) in Oslo, Norway May 9, 2025. NTB/Terje Pedersen via REUTERS
Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen walks on the day of the meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) in Oslo, Norway May 9, 2025. NTB/Terje Pedersen via REUTERS
TT
20

Denmark to Host Meeting on Arctic Security

Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen walks on the day of the meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) in Oslo, Norway May 9, 2025. NTB/Terje Pedersen via REUTERS
Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen walks on the day of the meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) in Oslo, Norway May 9, 2025. NTB/Terje Pedersen via REUTERS

The leaders of Denmark, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Iceland and Norway will meet Monday for talks on Arctic security, Denmark's government said, as US President Donald Trump vies to gain control of Greenland.

Trump has repeatedly said the US needs the strategically-located resource-rich Arctic island for security reasons, and has refused to rule out the use of force to secure it.

Trump's comments have sparked concern in other Arctic regions as well, including Iceland and Norway's Svalbard archipelago.

The remarks have also angered Danish and Greenlandic leaders, who have insisted that the island will decide its own future and the US "will not get Greenland."

"Even though our countries meet in different parts of the world, it is natural that we, in this circle of countries, meet to discuss the current security situation in the Arctic and the North Atlantic," AFP quoted Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen as saying in a statement issued on Sunday.

Monday's talks will be held in Torshavn, the capital of the Faroe Islands, and be attended by Frederiksen as well as Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Iceland's Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir and Faroe Islands Prime Minister Aksel Johannesen.

Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store will participate via video link.