Qatar Airways suspends flights to Sudan amid soaring inflation

Qatar's flag carrier has suspended flights from the Sudanese capital Khartoum, citing "commercial reasons".

Qatar Airways announced last week on Twitter that trips between Doha and Khartoum will be temporarily halted at the start of April.

The airline is the latest to suspend flights to Sudan, which has been long been suffering from financial woes, such as soaring inflation that have sparked mass anti-government protests.

Kenya Airways, Emirates Airlines, Etihad Airways, Lufthansa, KLM and Swiss have all cancelled their routes to Sudan, according to media reports.

Officials speaking to Al-Jazeera said Qatar Airways' decision was triggered by the volatility of the Sudanese pound exchange rate and a rise in the price of fuel.

They also said the Saudi-led blockade on Qatar has forced the airline to take a much longer route to Khartoum, significantly increasing costs.

"Qatar Airways was running three flights a day to Khartoum carrying about 500 passengers, but after the blockade it decreased to about 250 passengers a day," said the head of the Sudanese Travel Agencies and Tourism Association.

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