Lebanese flight attendants banned from flights to Israel

The civil aviation authority in Lebanon banned all Lebanese flight attendants from flying to Israeli airports.

2 min read

04 December, 2016

Lebanese flight attendants have been banned from taking any flights to or from Israel [AFP]

Lebanese flight attendants have been banned from taking any flights to or from Israel, Lebanon's civil aviation authority told airlines on Saturday.

Although a state of war means there are no flights between Lebanon and Israel, the new law appears aimed at Lebanese flight attendents working onboard foreign airliners.

"The General Directorate of Civil Aviation […] informs all foreign airliners operating in Lebanon … [that] there will be a strict implementation of the law banning illegal contacts between Lebanese [nationals] and the [Israeli] enemy."

Saturday's prohibition comes on the heels of internal controversies inside official Lebanese institutions and major investigations following the arrests of over 100 Lebanese individuals since 2010 for allegedly spying for Israel.

It also follows a Lebanese airline which was caught on camera parked on the tarmac of an Israeli airport.

Lebanon and Israel have remained officially in a state of war since 1948 though they signed an armistice agreement in 1949.

Following the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon, Israel occupied parts of South Lebanon that ended with their withdrawal in 2000.

The 2006 Israel-Lebanon war fought primarily between Israel and the Lebanese Hizballah militia was the last major conflagration between forces in either country.

Border flare-ups have continued while Israel and Hizballah continue operations against the other.

Israelis are strictly prohibited from entering Lebanon, while Beirut authorities can detain or refuse entry to visitors whose passports show any signs they have visited Israel.

Israel also classifies Lebanon as an "enemy state".