Israel is set to gradually reopen the country’s airspace for outbound flights on Sunday morning, allowing thousands of foreigners stuck in the country since the US-Israel offensive on Iran was launched last weekend to begin flying home, and Israelis to leave the country.

The move comes as Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport was partially reopened Wednesday night for inbound flights, to help repatriate some 120,000 Israelis stranded abroad since the country’s airspace was shut.

The closure of the country’s main international gateway initially left some 37,000 tourists in the country, scrambling to get back home. Not knowing when outbound flights from Ben Gurion Airport would resume, more than 9,000 tourists have left the country via land border crossings, according to the Tourism Ministry, leaving the current number still in Israel at around 28,000.

Starting Sunday at 8 a.m., a maximum of two narrow-body aircraft will be permitted to depart per hour from Ben Gurion Airport, with no more than 70 passengers per flight. The number of outbound flights is tied to the number of repatriation flights currently approved by the Transportation Ministry and security authorities.

Passengers leaving on flights operated by Israeli airlines El Al, Israir, Arkia and Air Haifa will need to use the early check-in program from home and arrive at the airport about an hour and a half before departure. The guidelines are in place to avoid overcrowding and limit the time passengers stay on the ground at the airport, as missile and rocket attacks from Iran and Lebanon........

© The Times of Israel