Flight disruptions at Beirut airport due to escalation of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah

Dozens of passengers looked anxiously at the display boards at Lebanon’s only international airport on Sunday as more flights to the capital were canceled or delayed amid escalating hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

Beirut’s international airport was operational, but many passengers were stranded as major airlines suspended flights after Israel and Hezbollah announced full-scale attacks amid an escalation in cross-border hostilities.

“We arrived at 4:30 a.m. (01:30 GMT) for our 8:00 a.m. flight, but they told us it was cancelled,” said Elham Shukair, a passenger bound for the United States via Jordan. Sitting on her luggage in the arrivals hall, she said she had booked another flight on Lebanon’s Middle East Airlines for Sunday in the hope of reaching Amman and making her connecting flight.

The Iranian-backed Lebanese Hezbollah movement has been engaged in almost daily exchanges of fire with Israeli forces in support of its ally Hamas since the Palestinian militia’s attack on Israel on October 7, which triggered the Gaza war.

But Israel launched airstrikes on Lebanon on Sunday, saying it had foiled a large-scale Hezbollah attack, while the Lebanese group announced cross-border attacks of its own to avenge the killing of one of its top commanders, Fuad Shukr, in an Israeli strike last month.

Since Shukr’s murder, fears have grown that the cross-border violence could escalate into an open conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. The two countries last fought a devastating war in the summer of 2006.

During this war, Israel bombed Beirut airport.

On Sunday, other passengers sat on the floor in the departure lounge while screens displayed cancelled or delayed flights, while the arrivals area was largely empty.

“Our flight is still scheduled but is delayed,” said Diala Hatoum, who wanted to travel with her son on Qatar Airways.

“We will see, we will wait and see,” she added.

– Stranded passengers –

There was also uncertainty at Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport after aviation authorities delayed or diverted flights.

After a brief disruption, the airport resumed operations at 7:00 a.m. (04:00 GMT), but dozens of passengers were stranded after some flights were canceled or delayed.

“We really want a break from all this… the situation in Israel,” said Sofia Levi, 23, a stranded passenger.

Shay Shauli, 45, who was planning to fly to Athens, said he waited at the terminal for more than three hours.

“I’m waiting to see if the flight is still running. If not, I’ll have to buy a new ticket and that’s much more expensive,” he told AFP.

Air France and its subsidiary Transavia said they would suspend flights to Beirut and Tel Aviv scheduled for Sunday and Monday, but said the move could be extended depending on the situation in the Middle East.

Royal Jordanian Airlines announced the suspension of flights to Beirut “due to the current situation”.

The United Arab Emirates airline Etihad Airways also announced that it had suspended its flights to and from Beirut and Tel Aviv on Sunday.

On Friday, German airline Lufthansa announced that it was extending the suspension of flights to Beirut until September 30 and to Tel Aviv until September 2.

The Lebanese Civil Aviation Authority stressed on Sunday that the airport was “functioning normally” despite some disruptions.

There is “no truth” to the rumors that all flights had been canceled, the agency said in a statement carried by the official national news agency.

Several airlines had already announced the suspension or cancellation of flights to Beirut in recent weeks, but some later resumed operations.

(This article has not been edited by News18’s editorial team and is taken from the feed of a syndicated news agency – AFP.)