Airlines extend suspension of Middle East flights amid regional turmoil

Several airlines have extended the suspension of flights to Beirut, Tel Aviv and Tehran amid ongoing Middle East tension between Iran and Hezbollah and their arch-foe Israel.

German airline group Lufthansa said Monday it was extending the suspension of flights to Tel Aviv, Tehran, Beirut, Amman and Erbil through to August 21.

It said it would also avoid using Iranian and Iraqi airspace until August 21, an extension from a previous date of August 13.

Affected passengers can rebook or cancel their journeys free of charge, Lufthansa said, adding that it regretted the inconvenience caused “due to the current situation.”

Swiss International Air Lines also said that it had extended the suspension of its flights to and from Tel Aviv and Beirut up to and including Aug. 21. It added that the airspace over Iran, Iraq and Israel would be avoided until Aug. 21.

Also on Monday, Air France and its subsidiary Transavia France again extended the suspension of their flights to Beirut, through Wednesday August 14.

The flights have been suspended since July 29 and their resumption “will be subject to a new assessment of the situation on the ground,” Air France said in a statement. The French carrier continues to serve Tel Aviv’s airport.

Other airlines have also modified their flight schedules in the region recently.

Tensions have soared as Iran and its allies vowed revenge for the high-profile killings of Hezbollah’s top military commander Fuad Shukr in Lebanon and Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran late last month, both blamed on Israel.

Hezbollah has been exchanging near-daily fire with Israeli forces across the border between Lebanon and Israel.