Airlines to repatriate Israelis stranded abroad

Israeli airlines are to begin bringing home tens of thousands of Israelis stranded abroad in the coming days, media reported on Monday.

A coordinated effort to repatriate those who want to return will start this week, the news website ynet and other outlets said, citing officials and sources in Israel’s Transport and Defence Ministries.

There was initially no official confirmation of this.

According to the Jerusalem Post newspaper, almost 150,000 Israelis are affected.

In addition to private airlines, an Israeli shipping company is to help bring people to Israel by sea, according to the ynet report, citing Transport Minister Miri Regev.

The authorities will also take steps to transport foreigners out of Israel to safety.

Meanwhile, the country’s largest airline El Al is accepting applications from stranded customers whose flights to Israel were cancelled due to the closure of airspace.

Since the rapid escalation of hostilities with Iran on Friday, there are currently no flights in and out of Israel.

The mutual attacks began after Israel launched widespread strikes on Iranian territory on Friday, including nuclear sites, defence installations, urban targets, and oil and gas infrastructure. Tehran called these a declaration of war and retaliated.