The arrival hall of Beirut International Airport on June 4, 2025. (Credit: Philippe Hage Boutros.)
BEIRUT — The General Directorate of Civil Aviation announced, in a statement, that it has scheduled three flights between Beirut and Basra to repatriate Lebanese stranded in Iraq following the closure of Iraqi airspace due to the conflict between Iran and Israel.
These flights, operated by Iraqi Airways, were chartered at the request of the Minister of Public Works and Transport, Fayez Rassamny, the Directorate specified.
Two flights had been initially scheduled before the addition of a third, "to accelerate the pace of returns." The three flights will operate at the following times: 9 a.m., 10:30 a.m., and 5 p.m.
It specified that the total capacity of these three flights is approximately 750 passengers.
The Public Works Minister also called "all Lebanese wishing to return from Iraq to book their seats via Iraqi Airways, which has shown total cooperation in this regard, with daily flights continuing regularly until the stabilization of the aerial and security situation in Iraq."
He also reaffirmed that he is "closely monitoring all relevant developments, in coordination with the concerned authorities, concerned about the safety of citizens and their quick and safe return."
Iraq closed its airspace last Friday after an Israeli attack and has since suspended all its flights. MEA, which operates several connections with Iraqi airports, is affected by this suspension.
The national company continues to operate other flights and has even added ones to some destinations with high demand, such as Istanbul or Paris.
The Lebanese Foreign Affairs Ministry stated on Sunday that it is making contacts to speed up the return of Lebanese stranded abroad due to the series of flight suspensions and cancellations following the conflict between Israel and Iran that began Friday, when Israel launched an attack.
According to a statement from Baabda, President Joseph Aoun is also closely following the implementation of measures to ensure the return to Beirut of Lebanese blocked abroad, as well as developments in the context of the ongoing escalation between Israel and Iran. The head of state is also in contact with security officials monitoring the situation on the ground, in accordance with the decisions taken at the security meeting held last Saturday at the Baabda Palace.
