The first flights operated to repatriate Israelis who were stranded in Dubai for more than a week landed on Monday at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport.

The two flights, operated by flydubai, flew home a total of 604 passengers, after “significant delays resulting from the operational complexity of operating flights under current conditions,” the Transportation Ministry said. In addition, a flight operated from Dubai flew 121 passengers via Athens back to Israel, the ministry said.

The repatriation flights are part of a plan led by the Transportation Ministry to fly home thousands of Israelis stranded in the United Arab Emirates, after efforts were paused over the weekend following the closure of airports in the Gulf country due to Iranian missile and drone attacks.

The ministry said it will organize additional flights from Dubai chartered by Emirati airlines and expects to end the repatriation operation in the coming days. The operation comes as Iran has been firing missiles and drones at Israel, the UAE and other countries in the region.

Israeli carrier Israir operated a third flight overnight to repatriate its customers stranded in Dubai since the start of the war with Iran. The flight carrying 170 passengers took off from Dubai last night and landed at Aqaba airport in Jordan.

Upon landing in Aqaba, Israir provided passengers with food and drink, and transportation to the border........

© The Times of Israel