Airlines suspend flights to Israel as tensions mount

Major European airlines have moved to suspend flights to Israel and some other parts of the Middle East as fears grow of a wider conflict in the region.

Lufthansa Group, which also owns Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Eurowings and Swiss, said all flights to Tel Aviv and Tehran are suspended until Thursday (8 August), while services to Beirut are currently cancelled up to and including 12 August.

ITA Airways has suspended operations to Tel Aviv until Tuesday (6 August) to ensure “the safety of its passengers and crews”. Meanwhile KLM has gone further and cancelled all flights to and from Tel Aviv until 26 October.

Wizz Air also temporarily suspended flights to Israel and Jordan “due to the escalating situation in the region” up to and including Monday (5 August).

The airline said in a statement: “Wizz Air regrets the inconvenience caused to the passengers due to the current situation and is offering affected customers a 120 per cent refund in Wizz credits, a full refund in the original form of payment or free rebooking options.”

Israeli carrier El Al is increasing its services to and from Tel Aviv this week, despite the heightened tensions, which follows attacks carried out in Lebanon and Iran last week.