DUBAI — Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport reopened last night with a Middle East Airline's flight from Dubai among the first to land.
The airport had been closed after sectarian violence erupted, but all major airlines are now expected to resume flights.
A Middle East Airline official confirmed the airline operated a flight at 9pm to Beirut yesterday.
"The situation is all clear in Lebanon," he said. "We will have a lot of passengers. A lot of them had postponed their travel until now between Dubai and Beirut in both directions. We will resume our schedule of daily flights."
He said if demand proved especially high the airline would consider operating two flights today.
Emirates, too, has planned to resume its schedule in the afternoon today.
"Emirates Airline will operate its scheduled afternoon flights EK953 and EK954 between Dubai and Beirut on May 16, and from May 17 onwards Emirates will resume its twice-a-day scheduled services between both cities," a spokesperson said.
Air Arabia Public Relations Manager Housam Raydan said the airline's flights would also resume their normal schedule today.
However Etihad Airways, which usually operates a flight at 1am on a Friday morning, said its flights would remain cancelled.
"We will continue to monitor the situation and decision will be taken on Friday about the 1am Saturday flight to Beirut," spokesperson Thomas Clarke said. Airlines referred customers to their respective websites and call centres for further information.
In the meantime, Lebanese expatriates in Dubai hailed the news of reopening of Beirut International Airport. Some of them, however, expressed, some doubts.
Elia Maalouf did not believe at first that the airport was reopened. He said that nothing could be confirmed in a country like Lebanon, which is open to all possibilities. "I had booked a flight more than one month ago. However, I had to cancel it because of the security situation in Lebanon. I was worried about having to travel to Damascus airport and going from there by land to Beirut. I can't say how much I am relieved."
Maya Khoury was also overjoyed with the resumption of flights between Dubai and Beirut. "I hope that the situation will remain calm and stable. I am looking forward to going back home soon to spend my summer vacation there."
