International airlines have suspended more flights to Lebanon amid an Israeli bombardment that authorities said had killed almost 560 people since Monday.
The United Arab Emirates-based airline Emirates announced the temporary suspension of its flights to Beirut on Tuesday and Wednesday. Its sister airline flydubai also cancelled flights to Beirut on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Emirates said in a statement: “The safety of our crew and customers is of utmost importance and will not be compromised.”
Qatar Airways, which operates two flights a day to the Lebanese capital, also cancelled services for two days. “Due to the ongoing situation in Lebanon, Qatar Airways has temporarily suspended flights to and from Beirut Rafic Hariri international airport until September 25,” it said.
The Israeli military carried out airstrikes against the Lebanese Hezbollah militia on Monday in what Lebanese authorities described as the country’s deadliest day in decades.
Air France on Tuesday extended the suspension of its Beirut flights until 1 October, which a spokesperson told AFP was due to the “security situation”. Flights to and from the Israeli city of Tel Aviv, suspended by Air France last week, were operating normally after resuming at the weekend, the spokesperson added.
Germany’s Lufthansa had already suspended Beirut flights until 26 October and on Tuesday it extended the suspension of flights to and from Tel Aviv and the Iranian capital, Tehran, up to and including 14 October in response to the tensions.
It said it was continuing to “monitor the situation closely and will assess it further in the coming days”.
Egypt’s state-owned flag carrier Egyptair said it was suspending all of its flights to Beirut until the situation in Lebanon stabilised.
The Jordanian Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission said on Monday that Royal Jordanian Airlines flights to Beirut had been suspended until further notice.
