On July 10, 2024, a flydubai flight from Dubai (DXB) to Sri Lanka (CMB) was forced to make an emergency landing in Karachi, Pakistan, when one of its passengers fell ill and required a medical evacuation.
Consequently, two Israeli passengers on board spent a tense few hours in a Muslim country with complicated diplomatic connections to Israel, due to ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
The incident was reminiscent of the opening scenes of the popular Israeli series ‘Teheran‘, in which two Israeli passengers happen to be onboard a diverted aircraft.
Following the emergency landing, the two Israeli passengers contacted Israel’s Foreign Ministry while the plane was on the tarmac. In response, the ministry took action to guarantee their safety.
According to the Jewish News Syndicate (JNS) news agency, the plane departed to its original destination shortly after the incident with all passengers on board.
A similar incident occurred on June 30, 2024, when an EL AL Boeing 737-800 was operating a scheduled flight between Warsaw (WAW) and Tel Aviv (TEL). The crew reported that one of the passengers was having a medical emergency as the plane took off over the Mediterranean Sea. Soon after, the aircraft landed at the nearest airport, Antalya Airport (AYT).
Potentially, Israel’s citizens face difficulties not only when visiting Arab countries, but also some Southwestern Asia countries such as Turkey. The latter recently announced the cutting of trade ties with Israel until the Gaza conflict is over.
Currently the Israeli government recommends that its people take care when choosing travel destinations, particularly, if possible postponing flights to Arab and Middle Eastern countries, the North Caucasus or territories bordering Iranian and Muslim nations in Asia.