Moscow has suspended all flights between Russia and Israel, telling Israeli airlines not to operate the route until further notice, according to reports from Russian sources. The move follows a series of Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian military airfields and bases, though no official confirmation from either government has been published yet.
Russia has suspended all flights between Russia and Israel, instructing Israeli airlines to halt operations on the route entirely, according to unconfirmed Russian-source reports circulating Thursday evening. This reported government-level decision broadens a sequence of disruptions that began earlier on Thursday: as The Zioneer first reported from passenger accounts at 09:20 Jerusalem, El Al began canceling Moscow flights amid Ukrainian drone attacks. Over subsequent hours, the thread saw the carrier's suspension confirmed by multiple Israeli journalists (09:20) and attributed specifically to widespread drone strikes on Moscow's airports (09:20), with the airline itself citing 'recent security events' at 09:20. By 09:20 El Al had officially announced a several-day halt with a reassessment expected next week. Thursday night's reported Russian directive would formalize a blanket ban covering all carriers, superseding the airline's unilateral step.
Corroboration evolved across the thread: initial reports on El Al's moves relied on isolated passenger accounts, then gained confirmation from Israeli media outlets N12 and i24NEWS, and finally received an airline statement. The new Russian-source reports remain a single channel of information — no official statement from Moscow or comment from Israeli authorities has been published.
The wider context, as The Zioneer has documented, includes a pattern of escalating Ukrainian long-range drone operations deep into Russian territory. The same wave of attacks Thursday had grounded all flights at Moscow airports (14:16 Jerusalem), and earlier this week saw large-scale UAV raids on the capital (Tue 09:22 Jerusalem) and a strike on a satellite communications center outside Moscow (Tue 07:45 Jerusalem). Russia has previously acknowledged severe damage from Ukrainian strikes (Wed Jun 10, 06:40 Jerusalem) and imposed sustained airspace closures near MiG-31K launch lines (Sun Jun 14, 22:33 Jerusalem).
What remains open: the precise scope and duration of the reported Russian suspension are unclear; it has not been independently verified, and it is unknown whether it extends to cargo or charter flights beyond the commercial passenger ban. No Israeli government response has been received.
6 developments
- DevelopingRussia halts all flights at Moscow airports after Ukrainian drone attack, reports say
- ConfirmedIran suspends all flights, Tasnim reports after Israeli strike
- DevelopingUkraine launches largest drone attack yet on Moscow, sources say
- DevelopingAir France cancels flights to Israel through June 21
Source and signal
- Internal intake