Major European Airlines Halt, Suspend Middle East Flights

(MENAFN) Major European carriers moved swiftly Saturday to halt or suspend flights across the Middle East following the joint US-Israeli military assault on Iran, leaving thousands of passengers facing disruptions amid rapidly deteriorating regional security.

Air France became one of the first to act, scrapping services to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut, Dubai, and Riyadh, while pushing its Tel Aviv suspension through Sunday, according to a broadcaster.

Germany’s flagship carrier Lufthansa followed suit, grounding flights to Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, Erbil, and Tehran through at least March 7, media reported.

Dutch carrier KLM also halted services between Amsterdam and Tel Aviv until March 1.

British Airways cast the widest net among affected carriers, issuing a direct advisory to passengers: “If you are due to fly between London Heathrow and Abu Dhabi, Amman, Bahrain, Doha, Dubai or Tel Aviv, you can change your flight free of charge up to and including the 6 March, or request a refund.”

Norway’s airline announced it would temporarily avoid flying to and from Dubai until March 4, while Poland’s LOT scrapped all services to and from Tel Aviv through March 3.

Italy’s ITA Airways issued one of the most expansive airspace bans, announcing: “In light of the current situation in the Middle East, ITA Airways has decided to suspend flights to and from Tel Aviv until March 7. The following airspaces will not be used until March 7: Israel, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Iran. Additionally, for operational reasons, flights to and from Dubai are suspended until March 1st.”

The aviation fallout follows Israel’s early Saturday offensive against Iran — codenamed “Lion’s Roar” — which the Israeli government launched as a “preemptive” strike, simultaneously declaring a “special and immediate” state of emergency across the country.

US President Donald Trump subsequently confirmed American military involvement, stating that his forces had launched “major combat operations” in Iran aimed at “protecting the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime.”

The strikes landed at a particularly sensitive diplomatic moment — nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran, mediated by Oman, were still actively underway, with the latest round of Geneva talks having wrapped up just Thursday.

The conflict is the second major military flare-up in under a year. Last June, the US struck three Iranian nuclear facilities during the 12-day Israel-Iran war.

MENAFN01032026000045017169ID1110804351