El Al, the national airline of Israel, said on Friday that it will cease operations to South Africa at the end of March due to a decline in passenger demand.
Currently, El Al offers up to two weekly nonstop flights to Johannesburg.
“Due to the current security situation, there has been a significant decrease in demand among Israeli travellers to various destinations, including Johannesburg in South Africa,” El Al said in a statement.
“In light of this, starting at the end of March 2024, we will suspend the activity on the Johannesburg-Tel Aviv line.”
“Israelis don’t want to fly to South Africa,” a spokeswoman for the airline said.
“They are cancelling flights and planes are pretty empty… We understand it’s the situation because it was different before,” the spokeswoman added.
The announcement was made just before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) gave preliminary ruling on whether Israel should be instructed to stop its military actions in Gaza.
The hearing at the ICJ is part of a case initiated by South Africa, which claims that Israel is guilty of genocide against Palestinians.
Israel strongly denies these allegations. South Africa has been openly supportive of the Palestinians in the ongoing conflict, leading to strained relations with Israel.
“Israelis don’t want to fly to South Africa,” a spokeswoman for the airline said. El Al currently has up to two non-stop flights to Johannesburg a week.
“They are cancelling flights and planes are pretty empty… We understand it’s the situation because it was different before,” the spokeswoman added.
“The fact that the Israelis don’t want to go to South Africa but do want to go to other places helps us decide that we’re pausing that route,” she said. The company also cited the current security situation.
