Amid reports of an imminent Iranian retaliatory attack on Israel following the assassination of Ismail Haniya, the political bureau chief of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, last month, countries including the UK and Egypt have ordered their airlines to bypass Iranian and Lebanese airspace or temporarily suspend flights.
According to Reuters on the 7th (local time), Egyptian authorities issued a directive stating, “All Egyptian airlines should avoid flying over Tehran.” The directive came after Iranian authorities notified on the same day that “military training will be conducted in Iranian airspace from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on the 7th and from 4:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. on the 8th.” It is unclear what the military training referred to in the notice means.
The UK has also advised its airlines not to fly over Lebanon. United Airlines in the US has also suspended flights to Tel Aviv, Israel since March 31, and Delta Air Lines has suspended flights between New York and Tel Aviv until the end of this month.
As fears spread that the Middle East war could spread across the entire region if Iran retaliates, the citizens of Tehran are also trembling in fear. According to the New York Times (NYT), Iranian authorities warned airlines that “military training, including shooting guns, will be conducted” in some areas from the night of the 7th to the 8th. However, they said that no warning was given to the citizens, which increased their anxiety.
“We’re in the dark,” Malihe (66), a Tehran resident, told the New York Times. “The authorities aren’t telling us anything, so we’re relying on the news to find out what’s going on.” Parisa (37) also confessed, “Even people who didn’t want to leave the country are now thinking about emigrating.”
Some citizens are also growing increasingly dissatisfied with the government. Mostafa (36), who lives in Rasht, northwestern Iran, criticized, “The government is supporting armed groups in the region, putting Iran in the crossfire of Israel.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s anti-regime media outlet Iran International reported on the 7th that ”Iranian President Masoud Fezeshkian recently asked Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to refrain from direct attacks on Israel.” It is reported that President Fezeshkian expressed concern that Iran’s economy could collapse if war broke out with Israel. According to Iran International, Supreme Leader Khamenei did not respond to this request in any way.
Reporter Lee Ki-wook [email protected]
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2024-08-09 06:25:55