Many Middle East flights still grounded as strikes on Lebanon intensify

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Many flights remained cancelled on Friday morning as a result of continued tension in the region in the aftermath of Iran’s major rocket attack on Israel.
The threat of a reprisal from Israel, combined with the country’s attacks on Lebanon, has left the Middle East in a precarious position, with many fearing a further escalation of a conflict that has already claimed countless lives. This has resulted in several airlines cancelling flights to certain destinations in the region.
Dubai-based airline Emirates announced it was cancelling all flights to and from Iraq (Basra and Baghdad), Iran (Tehran) and Jordan (Amman) on October 4 and 5 due to regional unrest.
“Customers transiting through Dubai with final destinations in Iraq, Iran and Jordan will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin until further notice,” the airline said in a travel update on its website.
“We continue to closely monitor the situation in the region and are in contact with the relevant authorities regarding developments.”
Earlier in the week, Emirates announced it was cancelling all flights to Beirut until October 8.
Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways resumed its service to Tel Aviv on Thursday. “The airline is closely monitoring the situation and remains in constant communication with relevant authorities and security intelligence providers,” a representative confirmed.
The airline previously told The National its services to Beirut would remain cancelled until October 8. The affected flights are EY535 and EY538.
Flydubai is resuming flights to Iran, Iraq, Israel and Jordan on Friday morning, the airline confirmed.
“Flydubai flights to Iran, Iraq, Israel and Jordan will resume from October 4,” said a representative. “We are monitoring the situation closely and will amend our flight schedule if required. Flydubai operates within flight paths approved by the regulator, and the safety of our passengers and crew remains our top priority.”
Flights from the airline to Beirut remain cancelled until October 7 inclusively, the representative said.
Air Arabia flights going from Beirut to Sharjah and Abu Dhabi remain suspended, while Egyptair said it was suspending flights to Beirut indefinitely. Jordan’s flag carrier Royal Jordanian said flights to Beirut were not operating “due to the current situation”.
Iran Air and Iraqi Airways have suspended flights to the Lebanese capital “until further notice”, news agencies in the respective countries reported.
Bahrain’s Gulf Air and Doha-based Qatar Airways took similar steps because of security concerns. The National has contacted Saudia and Gulf Air for comment.
Lebanon’s Middle East Airlines remains the only airline operating from Beirut. Other countries, including Britain, France and Ireland are calling on their citizens to leave. On Saturday, the European Commission and the EU Aviation Safety Agency issued conflict zone information bulletins recommending that airlines avoid operating in the airspace of Lebanon and of Israel “at all flight levels”.