British Airways has suspended flights to and from Israel because of safety concerns, the airline said on Wednesday.
In a statement, British Airways said: “Safety is always our highest priority and following the latest assessment of the situation we’re suspending our flights to and from Tel Aviv.
“We’re contacting customers booked to travel to or from Tel Aviv to apologise for the inconvenience and offer options including a full refund and rebooking with another airline or with British Airways at a later date. We continue to monitor the situation in the region closely.”
It comes after a BA flight going to Tel Aviv turned around and headed back to London because of security worries.
An airline spokesperson said: “Safety is always our highest priority and we’ve taken the decision to return our Tel Aviv flight to Heathrow.”
The Israel Airports Authority has since confirmed “there was no security threat at the Ben Guiron Airport” and stressed that the diversion was “the pilot’s decision”.
It also said that rockets were flying around the city at the time the BA flight was supposed to land, but none of them were considered a risk to the plane or the airport.
It has not yet been confirmed but flight-tracking website Flightradar suggests the flight in question was BA165.
On Monday, BA said it was monitoring the situation in Israel closely but would continue to operate in the region.
Many international airlines have suspended flights to Tel Aviv since Hamas fighters attacked Israel on Saturday and the military responded with fierce airstrikes on Gaza in the most serious conflict there in 50 years.
EasyJet usually serves Gatwick, Luton and Manchester airports from the Israeli city but has paused operations on those routes. Wizz Air, which connects Israel with Gatwick and Luton, has done the same.
Virgin Atlantic said on Wednesday evening that it is pausing flying to and from Tel Aviv for 72 hours.
Several Britons have complained about having to fork out thousands of pounds to leave Israel, with several accusing the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) of failing to repatriate them five days into the bloody conflict.
The FCDO said: “The UK government has a duty and a responsibility to support British nationals overseas. The situation here is a bit different because a lot of the Brits are dual nationals and regard Israel as their home.
“We will work closely with the Israeli government to provide support, if needed. We are working with the aviation industry and on border crossings. We are also in talks with Egypt on any Britons in Gaza.”
Israel’s ministry of tourism said it is “committed to ensuring that all tourists visiting Israel are safe and informed” - it is operating a WhatsApp hotline for tourists on +972 55 972 6931.
