3 more European airlines cancel flights to Israel amid regional tension

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) – Three major European airlines have canceled their flights to and from Israel due to rising regional tension, Israeli media said on Sunday.

Italian airline ITA Airways said all flights to and from Israel will be halted until Jan. 12, Israel Hayom newspaper said.

ITA Airways is the only Italian airline operating regularly in Israel.

French carrier Air France also extended its suspension of all flights to Israel until Dec. 26.

Air France had previously canceled its flights on a weekly basis but now it has issued a suspension lasting nearly 45 days.

The airline had initially canceled its flights for the period up to Nov. 12 but has now extended it further.

Greek airline Aegean Airlines also announced that it would not resume flights to Israel until Dec, 3, according to the daily.

In recent days, several other European carriers have either canceled flights to Israel or extended their suspensions due to escalating regional tension.

On Wednesday, Spanish airline Iberia canceled its flights to Israel through the end of November, following a missile strike from Lebanon that landed near a parking area at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion Airport. In addition, American Airlines has removed all flights to Israel from its system until September 2025.

Several other international airlines, including Virgin and Delta, have canceled flights to Israel through the spring of 2025.

Regional tension has escalated due to Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 43,500 people, mostly women and children, since last year.

The conflict has spread to Lebanon, with Israel launching deadly strikes across the country in an escalation from a year of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah since the start of the Gaza war.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi