Italian Airways cancels overnight flights to ‘Israel’ until Jan. 27: Hebrew media
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Italy’s national airline ITA Airways has cancelled its overnight flights to ‘Israel’ until January 27, amid the tensions with Iran, Hebrew channel 12 reported on Saturday.
Background
Air France announced yesterday on Friday evening the temporary suspension of its flights to Dubai due to the geopolitical situation in the Middle East, before announcing their resumption later, while Dutch airline KLM said it had halted several flights to the region.
In a statement, Air France said at the time: “Given the current situation in the Middle East, the company has decided to temporarily suspend its flights to Dubai” in the United Arab Emirates, noting that it is “constantly monitoring developments in the geopolitical situation in the regions served by its aircraft and those they overfly” to ensure “the highest levels of safety and security” for its flights.
The airline cancelled two flights from Paris to Dubai on Friday—AF660 and AF658—which in turn led to the cancellation of two additional return flights from Dubai to Paris that were scheduled to operate on Saturday using the same aircraft.
Air France confirmed that it is “monitoring the situation moment by moment and will provide further updates on its flight schedule at a later time,” stressing that the safety of its customers and crews remains its “top priority.”
KLM also announced the suspension of its flights to Tel Aviv and Dubai, as well as to Dammam and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, according to the Dutch television network NOS.
KLM did not disclose the reason behind its decision, but said it was taken in coordination with Dutch authorities.
On Monday, Germany’s Lufthansa announced the suspension of its flights to and from Tehran until March 29, inclusive.
In recent days, the United States has stepped up pressure on Iran, with US President Donald Trump announcing on Thursday that a US military “armada” is heading toward the Gulf.
Trump had repeatedly threatened to strike Iran in response to authorities’ reported crackdown on recent protests in the country, before appearing to back away from the threat last week after confirming that Tehran had suspended executions that were scheduled to be carried out against protesters.
The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) said that the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, which had been stationed in the South China Sea, is currently heading toward the Gulf region.
