Several airlines began canceling flights from the U.S. to Israel on Saturday after Hamas militants took the Middle Eastern nation by surprise with a multi-pronged attack that has claimed hundreds of lives and appears far from over.
The American Embassy in Israel said early Saturday afternoon that Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport remains open but noted that the security situation and staff availability could affect flights. Travelers are advised to check with their airlines.
The embassy’s staff is under a shelter-in-place notice.
Delta, United and American Airlines have all canceled direct flights scheduled Saturday into Ben Gurion Airport, Israel’s main commercial air hub.
American told HuffPost in a statement that it was waiving fees for changing flights to Israel through next week and would “continue to monitor the situation with safety and security top of mind and will adjust our operation as needed.”
German airline Lufthansa told CNN in a statement that one flight would run from Tel Aviv to Frankfurt this weekend, but others have been canceled.
Some planes bound for Tel Aviv were diverted mid-flight as the fighting broke out: A Ryanair flight from Berlin was forced to return to its starting point, as was a United flight out of San Francisco, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website.
El Al flights appear to be operating normally. Israel’s national airline equips its aircraft with missile defense systems and has continued to fly in the past when other airlines grounded their planes. A CNN crew that landed at Ben Gurion Airport documented the scene on the ground as sirens began going off on Saturday.
Fatima Shbair via Associated Press
The U.S. State Department had already warned Americans against travel to Gaza before the Hamas attack, and it advised caution when traveling to Israel in general due to the threat of terrorism.
Early Saturday, Hamas militants began launching thousands of rockets from Gaza, the strip of land that adjoins the Mediterranean Sea, into towns and cities across southern and central Israel. The violence is regarded as the largest-scale attack on Israel since the 1973 conflict between the country and its Arab neighbors.
In a televised address, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the nation they were “at war” and that “the enemy will pay an unprecedented price.”
Israeli civilians have been killed and wounded in addition to military forces, with Hamas fighters taking hostages back to Gaza, the American Embassy in Israel said.
Any U.S. citizens in Gaza who want to leave are directed toward the Rafah Border Crossing with Egypt.