United Airlines and Delta Airlines canceled flights to Israel, Tel Aviv, due to rising tensions between Iran-backed Hezbollah group and Israel.
Both carriers announced separately that the suspension would begin from the evening of July 31, 2024.
Delta Air Lines has postponed flights from New York-JFK to Tel Aviv until August 2, 2024, while United Airlines, which runs 14 weekly flights to Tel Aviv, has suspended flights until August 6, 2024.
According to Hebrew media, thousands of Israelis are now stuck in the United States due to the cancellations.
Delta has issued travel waivers for all passengers with reservations to travel to or from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport (TLV) until September 6, 2024, which will allow them to reschedule flights. Meanwhile, United Airlines said that it will continue to closely observe the situation between Israel and Hezbollah.
Other airlines are likely to follow suit.
British Airways has also announced cancellations to Tel Aviv, but the duration is currently uncertain. On July 29, 2024, Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa both canceled two nighttime flights to and from Tel Aviv.
Air France and Lufthansa announced on July 29, 2024, the decision to suspend flights to Beirut until August 5, 2024, in response to Israel’s warning of retaliation for missile attacks from Lebanon.
Despite the disruptions Israeli flag carrier El Al has confirmed that its flight timetables will be running as usual.
The situation in the region worsened following the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in a missile attack in Tehran. Israel has recently blamed Lebanese Hezbollah for the death of 12 children after a shooting in the Golan Heights on July 27, 2024.
A number of Western countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, have advised citizens against traveling to Lebanon. Poland’s foreign ministry spokesman Paweł Wroński announced that Poland is ready to evacuate its citizens if the situation between Israel and Lebanon worsens.