GERMANY issued a new directive cautioning the country’s airlines from entering Iranian airspace, Flightradar24 said on Wednesday, shortly after Lufthansa rejigged its flight operations across the Middle East amid escalating tensions in the region.
Lufthansa said on Wednesday that it would bypass Iranian and Iraqi airspace until further notice while it would only operate day flights to Tel Aviv and Amman from Wednesday until Monday next week. Some flights could also be cancelled as a result of these actions, it added in a statement.
Nationwide anti-government protests in Iran started over economic hardships at the end of December last year and have spiralled over the past month with several protesters reported killed while authorities moved to black out the internet to curb growing unrest.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene in support of protesters in Iran. Iran’s protests follow bouts of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East which have elevated tensions across the region.
The situation has spiked volatility in markets. Investors have piled into safe havens such as gold and the dollar.
The German airline group said in its statement that affected passengers would be automatically rebooked and proactively contacted and added that crews flying into Israel and Amman would fly back directly without an overnight stay on site.
Separately, Italian carrier ITA Airways, in which Lufthansa Group is now a major shareholder, said that it would similarly suspend night flights to Tel Aviv until Tuesday next week.
Airline operators like flydubai and Turkish Airlines have cancelled multiple flights to Iran in the past week. REUTERS
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