El Al Pauses Moscow Flights as Regional Tensions Escalate

El Al announced today (Thursday) a temporary suspension of its service on the Tel Aviv-Moscow route, following the latest developments in the war between Russia and Ukraine. The company said the decision was made after reviewing the security and operational situation, and that at this stage, flights to Moscow will not operate in the coming days.

According to the company’s statement, another situation assessment will take place during the coming week, after which a decision will be made on whether service on the route can resume. Passengers affected by the move are expected to receive updates directly from the company and will be given the option to choose among different alternatives in accordance with the law.

The decision comes amid a worsening of the confrontation between Russia and Ukraine. Overnight, Ukraine carried out an attack on several targets inside Russian territory, including a major gas facility in the Orenburg region and two satellite communications centers, one of them in the Dubna area near Moscow. According to reports, the strikes forced Russia to redirect air defense systems to protect Moscow and the Kerch Bridge, which connects Russia to the Crimean Peninsula.

According to a Reuters report published today, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had instructed intelligence and military officials to carry out preemptive strikes against facilities used by Russia for its war effort. It was also reported that Ukrainian drones struck electricity infrastructure in Sevastopol on the Crimean Peninsula, along with additional targets in central and southern Russia.

About a week ago, Ukraine carried out a large-scale overnight attack on Moscow, during which 555 drones were intercepted over the Russian capital. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said some of the drones succeeded in hitting an oil refinery in the city, while another 42 drones were intercepted by air defense systems, according to a report by the Russian news agency "TASS."

Ukraine’s president later confirmed responsibility for the strike on the refinery — the second hit on the facility within a week. Zelensky described the move as a "fully justified response" to Russia’s ongoing attacks on Ukraine. According to him, Kyiv’s allies had noticed the "precision and effectiveness of Ukraine’s attacks and the sanctions on Russia," and he called on Moscow to take political steps that would bring the war to an end.

This is not the first time El Al has been forced to halt service on the Moscow route because of security developments in the region. At the end of December 2024, the company suspended flights to Russia for four months following the crash of a civilian Azerbaijan Airlines plane in Kazakhstan, a disaster in which 38 people were killed.

At the time, aviation officials assessed that the plane had been hit by a Russian air defense system operating against Ukrainian drones. Russia did not officially acknowledge the circumstances of the incident, but Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to the president of Azerbaijan for the "tragic incident."