Wizz Air announced on Friday that it would be temporarily suspending flights to and from Israel and Jordan until Sunday, citing “the escalating situation in the region”.
In a statement announcing the decision, Wizz Air said it “regrets the inconvenience caused to the passengers due to the current situation and is offering affected customers a 120% refund in WIZZ credits, a full refund in the original form of payment or free rebooking options.”
Wizz Air joins several airlines to cancel their flights to Israel amid concerns over a retaliation to the eliminations of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh and Hezbollah's military leader Fuad Shukr.
On Thursday, German carrier Lufthansa and Emirati Fly Dubai announced the suspension of routes to Israel, following similar announcements by United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and British Airways a day earlier.
United announced that its route between Newark Airport in New Jersey to Tel Aviv would be suspended until further notice.
Air India, the only foreign carrier to fly between Israel and East Asia, announced that its flights were canceled as well.
Due to the cancellations, many Israelis were stranded abroad in recent days and needed to search for a way to return home. The Israeli carriers added flights from Athens and Israelis who wish to return to Israel must reach Greece.
The addition of flights came after a dramatic incident when a Lufthansa flight from Munich to Tel Aviv landed Wednesday night in Larnaca, Cyprus. The passengers, who were already told before takeoff that the flight would stop in Larnaca to switch crews, were surprised to learn after landing that the airline's security department would not allow the flight to continue to Tel Aviv.
An Austrian Airlines flight from Vienna to Ben Gurion Airport turned around as well. Shortly before landing in Israel, the pilot announced that due to the situation, the plane was being redirected to refuel in Bulgaria. After that, the flight continued back to Vienna.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)