Gulf airlines delay resumption of Lebanon flights as Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire begins

Thousands of expatriate workers want to return home but few seats are available

Air passengers wait to leave Beirut in August as the conflict with Israel escalated. Many thousands are expected to return in the coming weeks. EPA

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Gulf airlines are delaying the resumption of flights to Beirut as they wait to learn if a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah holds.

Emirates, Etihad, Qatar, flydubai, Saudia and Oman Air are among the companies whose flights remain suspended. Emirates airline and Etihad Airways recently said flights would be off until January. Tens of thousands of expatriate Lebanese in the Gulf are expected to try to visit family in the coming weeks, amid hopes that a 60-day ceasefire is not breached.

Flydubai told The National it was closely monitoring the situation. Emirates also said flights were suspended, while Etihad's website showed that flights to Beirut are on hold until January 13. The websites of Qatar Airways, Saudia and Oman Air show that their services remain cancelled. Jordan’s flag-carrier Royal Jordanian, which suspended flights in August, has not updated any information on flights to Lebanon.

Lebanon's national airline Middle East Airlines (MEA) is the only carrier that has kept flights operating from Beirut, even as the area around Rafic Hariri International Airport was bombed by Israeli jets.

MEA operates flights to and from Dubai and Abu Dhabi but services are full in the coming days. Before they were fully booked for December 1, a ticket for the flight is just under Dh2,500 ($680), far more than usual.

The Skyscanner website shows an option to fly to Cairo, Kuwait and Amman from Dubai and onwards to Beirut through MEA with prices for a single seat from Dh4,000.

'Finally going home'

Dubai resident Rabih Takkoush, 28, who works in social media, said that as soon as he heard about the ceasefire on Tuesday night he booked his ticket home.

"It was a struggle to get a ticket because Middle East is the only airline operating to Beirut. And, as soon as the ceasefire was announced, people started booking tickets. Many of my friends even took to social media to post about their frustration of not being able to fly home because they couldn't get a ticket." Mr Takkoush said people want to “go home to be with our families”.

“I’m just lucky I got a ticket. I can’t wait to go home and hug everyone. I don’t want anything more than to be with my family, and to hold them close to me.”

It’s nearly a year and a half since he last went home. “I’m someone who goes to Beirut at least two to three times a year, so this has been tough.”

It has been an emotional few days for Mr Takkoush and his family. "Last night was particularly tough because my mother and father had to move out of our family home and go to a quieter neighbourhood where my grandparents used to live. But, no matter where they went, the air strikes were relentless."

Mr Takkoush posted a video of a call to his mother as air strikes sounded in the background on his social media. She was crying as they talked. He said he decided to post the video to show the world what they have been going through.