Israel's national airline El Al has announced a new slate of fixed-price inbound flights aimed at encouraging Israelis who fled the recent war to return, even as thousands of others are still banned from leaving the country under sweeping government restrictions.
The airline said once repatriation flights are fully booked, tickets will open to the general public.
Prices are capped through the end of June, with fares from European cities starting at just $99, typically well over $300. Flights from New York and Los Angeles are priced at $649 and $699, respectively, compared to normal rates of more than $1,000.
The steep discounts appear to be part of a state-driven push to bring back citizens and dual nationals who fled during the 12-day war with Iran.
The move is part of a broader government-backed effort to normalise travel after the 13 June closure of Israeli airspace, which followed a barrage of Iranian missile strikes in response to Israel's attack.
The Airports Authority said it was coordinating with airlines for a "gradual return to routine", while smaller Israeli carriers like Arkia and Israir were operating limited inbound flights.
But the government's campaign to fly people back in stands in stark contrast to its continued refusal to let others leave.
Since the start of its military campaign against Iran, Israel has enforced a sweeping, and legally opaque, ban on outbound travel for most Israeli citizens.
A cabinet resolution passed last week requires individuals to obtain approval from a government "exceptions committee" to fly out, with no clear timeline for the restoration of normal departures.
That policy has left thousands of people effectively stranded inside Israel, including dual nationals and foreign residents.
Unlike foreign citizens, who have been allowed to leave via land and sea crossings, Israeli nationals have been told by airlines that they cannot purchase tickets out of the country.
With the skies closed to them, hundreds of Israelis had been fleeing by yacht, departing discreetly from marinas in Herzliya, Haifa, and Ashkelon. The vessels are bound for Cyprus, from where passengers hope to continue onwards to Europe.
Many of them are dual nationals, immigrants who had retained their home country passports or Israeli-born citizens who acquired second citizenships as adults.
Countries frequently linked to dual nationality among Israelis include the United States, EU states, Russia, and Ukraine, among others, with large Jewish diasporas.
Israel was established in 1948 through the forced expulsion of Palestinians and mass immigration of Jews from around the world, under a controversial "Law of Return" that grants Jews automatic citizenship, a policy that has long excluded Palestinians and facilitated the displacement and replacement of the indigenous population.