Flights again halted to Israel after Houthi missile lands near airport – Reuters

After a missile fired by Houthi rebels in Yemen fell close to Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, the nation's primary international travel hub, on Sunday, European and American airlines canceled flights for the following several days.

The missile hit, throwing a column of smoke into the air and generating panic among passengers in the terminal building. As a result, many international airlines canceled flights to and from Tel Aviv.

After suspending flights to Israel for the majority of the past year and a half since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack, international carriers had started to restart flights in January after reaching a ceasefire agreement with the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
As a result, flag carrier El Al Airlines had a monopoly-like position, joined by smaller competitors Arkia and Israir.

In a flat overall Tel Aviv market on Sunday, Israir gained 4.1% while El Al's shares increased 7%.

The trip from JFK in New York to Tel Aviv on Sunday and the return flight from Tel Aviv on Monday were canceled, according to Delta Air Lines. While it keeps an eye on the situation, United canceled its twice-daily flights between Tel Aviv and Newark.

Earlier Sunday morning, Delta and United planes from Tel Aviv left approximately ninety minutes late.

Due to the current circumstances, the Lufthansa Group, which consists of Lufthansa, Swiss, Brussels, and Austrian, said that it had suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv till Tuesday.

Air France canceled flights on Sunday, stating that passengers were moved to flights on Monday, while ITA announced that it has canceled flights from Italy to Israel through Wednesday. Air India flights from New Delhi were suspended on Sunday, and TUS flights to and from Cyprus were canceled through Monday.

The Israel Airports Authority reports that although Ryanair canceled flights on Sunday, flights are still planned on Monday. Wizz stopped flights as well.

According to the information (board), all European carriers have canceled, therefore I'm worried it will be quite difficult to return to France. No connection is conceivable because Lufthansa, Swiss, and Brussels Airlines have all canceled," stated 56-year-old Michael Sceemes, whose Air France trip was canceled.

Flydubai, Ethiopian, and Aegean did not cancel any flights.

El Al announced that it would resume offering travelers trapped by foreign airlines rescue flights to Israel from Larnaca and Athens, at a cost of $99 and $149, respectively.

Less than half an hour after the rocket struck a neighboring road, Ben Gurion Airport was operational, according to Udi Bar Oz, the airport's director.

Yahya Saree, the military spokeswoman for the Houthis, claimed credit for the attack and declared Israel's main airport "no longer safe for air travel."

During the early stages of the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, in late 2023, the Houthis, who now control large portions of Yemen, started attacking Israel and ships in the Red Sea.

Large-scale attacks on the Houthis were ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump in March in an effort to discourage them from attacking Red Sea commercial vessels.


Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, promised to take action against the Houthis. "We will attack in the future, just as we have attacked in the past. He declared, "There will be more blows."