El Al has canceled two repatriation flights that were scheduled to bring home Israelis stranded in Dubai after UAE authorities withdrew permission for Israeli carriers to land, the airline said Friday. The carrier said it will operate the planned flights as soon as official authorization is restored. More than 10,000 Israelis are estimated to be stranded in the UAE and other destinations following the attempted hijacking of flydubai Flight FZ1073 on Wednesday.
El Al canceled its rescue flights from Dubai on Friday morning after the United Arab Emirates withdrew landing permits for Israeli carriers. Israir has not opened ticket sales, and Arkia still hopes to receive clearance over the weekend, according to The Zioneer.
The cancellations follow a series of developments that began Thursday evening. At 22:42 Jerusalem, The Zioneer reported that the UAE had revoked landing permits for Israeli airlines ahead of the planned rescue operation, with talks continuing through the night. By early Friday (02:36 Jerusalem), El Al had begun canceling flights, and other carriers were reportedly following suit. At 08:31, Israel's Transportation Ministry announced that repatriation flights would be delayed pending completion of security coordination. At 09:04, unnamed Israeli sources expressed fury, claiming the UAE had canceled all landing approvals for Israeli aircraft in Dubai.
The crisis stems from the attempted hijacking of flydubai Flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv on Wednesday. The incident led to the suspension of flydubai operations to Israel. A senior Israeli official later told The Zioneer that a direct Iranian link had been ruled out and that the co-pilot had acted alone; the UAE attorney general has ordered an investigation. According to Israeli estimates, more than 10,000 Israelis remain stranded in the UAE and other destinations.
As of Friday morning, UAE authorities have not yet granted final landing approvals. Arkia continues to hope for clearance during the weekend, and negotiations between Israeli and Emirati officials are ongoing.
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Source and signal
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