ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF

Emirates is expected to resume flights to Tel Aviv, ending a two-year hiatus prompted by the 2023-2025 Israel-Hamas War, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Israeli public broadcaster KAN News reported in November that the airline planned to resume flights to Israel in early 2026. This report came shortly after Transportation Minister Miri Regev visited Dubai and met with senior Emirates officials. 

During this meeting, the officials expressed their willingness to resume operations between Israel and the UAE in the first quarter of 2026, the report added.

The airline has yet to make any announcements indicating if or when it will resume service to Tel Aviv.

Emirates began operating at Ben-Gurion Airport in June 2022, two years after the normalization of relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates under the Abraham Accords.

Emirates Air's Boeing 777-300ER in flight.
Emirates Air's Boeing 777-300ER in flight. (credit: Emirates Airlines PR)

“[Dubai] will offer a gateway for visitors to link with the world,” Emirates COO Adel Ahmad Al Redha stated at the time. “Tel Aviv represents an important milestone as we expand our services in this region. There is already a strong interest in service from Tel Aviv. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a second flight from Tel Aviv in the next few months.”

KLM resumes flights to Israel after announcing cancellations due to rising tensions in the region

Separately, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is resuming flights to Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, it said late on Saturday, after previously announcing it would avoid flying over large parts of the Middle East due to rising regional tensions.

"Based on the current security situation and operational feasibility, we have decided to resume our flights to Tel Aviv on February 2 and 3 with an adjusted schedule. From February 1 through 6, we will also operate flights to Dubai, also with an adjusted schedule," KLM said.

KLM, the Dutch arm of the Air France-KLM group, added that it had already resumed flights to other destinations in the region, including Riyadh and Dammam.

Alden Tabac and Reuters contributed to this report.