Bahrain opens its airspace for flights between Israel, UAE

Flights between Israel and the United Arab Emirates will be able to fly over Bahrain after the kingdom has said all services to and from the UAE can cross its airspace.

The decision, which the kingdom’s aviation authority said came on Thursday at the request of the UAE, follows a historic agreement last month between Abu Dhabi and Israel to normalise ties, reports Reuters.

“All flights to and from the UAE can use Bahrain airspace”, state news agency reported on Thursday, citing the aviation authority, without mentioning Israel.

The decision cuts flying time between the Middle East states by several hours.

Israel’s El Al this week flew through Saudi airspace carrying US and Israeli delegations from Tel Aviv to Abu Dhabi, the first official flight by an Israeli carrier over the kingdom. The return flight also used Saudi airspace.