Israel Imposes Restrictions on Flight Crews from 31 Countries

Israel has imposed new security directives barring flight crews, including pilots and cabin crew, from holding citizenship or dual citizenship of countries that do not maintain formal diplomatic relations with Israel from working on flights entering Israeli airspace. The French investigative website Mediapart revealed that airlines such as Air France have notified their employees of these directives issued by Israel’s Ministry of Transport. The restrictions apply to 31 countries that do not have formal diplomatic ties with Israel, including Arab and Muslim nations such as Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, Iraq, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Oman, Qatar, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen, as well as Indonesia, Pakistan, Mali, Niger, and other countries. This measure follows enhanced security mobilization and additional scrutiny implemented by Israel in the aviation protocols for flights bound for Tel Aviv. The policy has sparked widespread controversy in France and several other countries due to the reliance on nationality in excluding staff or regulating their duties.