Lebanon Airport Flights Cancelled or Delayed Amid Israeli Attack Concerns

Air France announced on Monday that it will suspend flights between Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Beirut on July 29 and 30, 2024, due to heightened security concerns at the destination. The airline stated that it is closely monitoring the situation in Lebanon, which has been affected by escalating tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.

On the same day, Lufthansa, Swiss, and Eurowings, all part of the Lufthansa Group, confirmed that they would also suspend flights to and from Beirut up to and including August 5, 2024. This decision is linked to the current developments in the Middle East. Lebanese carrier Middle East Airlines (MEA) reported that disruptions in its flight schedule were due to insurance risks.

The flight cancellations and delays come in the wake of a deadly rocket attack on a football field in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, which resulted in the deaths of 12 children and teenagers. This attack has further heightened fears of a broader conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed group. Israel's security cabinet authorized a strong response to the strike, while Hezbollah has denied any involvement in the attack, which is the deadliest incident in Israeli territory since the October 7 assault by Hamas that triggered the ongoing Gaza war.

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Flight information from Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport indicates that several airlines, including Turkish Airlines, SunExpress, AJet, Aegean Airlines, and Ethiopian Airlines, have also canceled flights scheduled to land in Beirut. The cancellations are part of a broader trend of disruptions affecting regional flights due to the conflict.

In response to the heightened security situation, MEA has announced delays to some flights scheduled to land in Beirut. These delays are attributed to "technical reasons related to the distribution of insurance risks for aircraft between Lebanon and other destinations."

Beirut's airport, Lebanon's only international gateway, has been targeted in past conflicts, including the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. The current disruptions follow a series of reciprocal drone and missile attacks between Israel and Iran earlier this year, which have further destabilized the region's transportation networks.