As airlines avoid Israel, UAE’s FlyDubai and Etihad keep up flights for both diplomacy and dollars.
Ben Guri International Airport, Israel (AP) At Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport, more than a year of war has taken its toll. Airlines around the world have called off flights, leaving gates deserted, while images of hostages still in the Gaza Strip direct the few passengers who do arrive to baggage claim.
But one check-in desk remains flush with travelers: the one serving flights to the United Arab Emirates, which have kept up a bridge for Israelis to the outside world throughout the war.
The Emirati,FlyDubai flights not only boost the airlines’ profits but also highlight the growing connections between the countries. These ties have endured the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and may become even stronger with U.S. involvement. President-elect Donald Trump is getting ready to take office again.
“It’s a political and economic statement,” stated Joshua Teitelbaum, a professor of Middle Eastern studies at Bar-Ilan University in Israel. “These are the primary foreign airlines that are still operating flights.”
Following the onset of hostilities with Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, numerous international airlines have repeatedly suspended, resumed, and then suspended their flights to Israel’s primary international gateway. The concern is real for the carriers, who remember the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine 10 years ago and Iran shooting down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 after takeoff from Tehran in 2020.
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