Turkey Refuses Refueling Israel’s National Carrier After Emergency Landing
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
ANTALYA, TURKEY (Worthy News) – Israel’s national carrier, El Al, announced Sunday that its flight from the Polish capital, Warsaw, to Tel Aviv in Israel was not allowed to refuel in Turkey after an emergency landing there to evacuate a passenger for medical reasons.
El Al said Turkish workers at Antalya airport in south-west Turkey refused to refuel flight LY5102 before it could take off for Israel. Turkish diplomats confirmed the emergency landing.
After waiting several hours on the tarmac of Turkey’s third busiest airport, the plane took off for Rhodes Island in Greece to refuel before heading to Tel Aviv.
Despite temperatures of up to 38 Celsius (100.4 Fahrenheit) outside, according to weather reports monitored by Worthy News, passengers were reportedly told they had no permission to leave the plane.
“Local workers refused to refuel the company’s plane even though it was a medical case,” El Al said, adding that the passenger was evacuated.
Relations between Turkey and Israel further deteriorated since the war in Gaza broke out on October 7 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing some 1,200 people and abducting about 250 other persons.
After Israel launched its war against Hamas, all direct flights between Israel and Turkey were canceled.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been a vocal critic of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and expressed support for Hamas as defenders “of their homeland.”
Hamas was designated as a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States, and the European Union, among others.
The Hamas-run health ministry claims Israel’s retaliatory military offensive has killed at least 37,877 people in Gaza, mostly civilians. Israel has given slightly lower figures and says nearly half of the dead are “Hamas terrorists.”
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