UAE's Etihad Airways announces new route to Israel

ABU DHABI – United Arab Emirates' national flag-carrier has announced a new route to Israel, offering daily scheduled year-round flights to Tel Aviv.

In a statement on Monday, Etihad Airways said the new service effective from 28 March 2021 “will provide greater choice and convenience for point-to-point business and leisure travellers between the UAE and Israel.”

“It will not only promote direct inbound tourism to Abu Dhabi, but will also give Emiratis and UAE residents the opportunity to discover Israel’s historical sites, beaches, restaurants and nightlife,” the airline’s statement added.

Departures will be timed to connect via Abu Dhabi to key gateways across the Etihad network including China, India, Thailand, and Australia, Etihad added.

The launch of flights follows the normalisation of diplomatic ties between the two nations, and the signing of the Abraham Accords between the UAE and Israel in Washington D.C. on 15 September. Only a month later, Etihad became the first GCC carrier to operate a commercial passenger flight to and from Tel Aviv on 19 October 2020.

According to a US-brokered deal, Israel had pledged to suspend its planned annexation of Palestinian lands in exchange for a normalisation of ties with the UAE.