Israel and UAE agree on extra security rules for Dubai flights

Israel and the United Arab Emirates have agreed on extra security measures for flights between Dubai and Israel, Haaretz reported. The arrangement lets Israeli airlines keep running repatriation flights out of Dubai.

Early repatriation services had already begun, but security requirements and landing permit problems held them up.

The agreement follows an incident on 30 September involving a Flydubai flight, in which the first officer attacked the captain in the cockpit and apparently tried to bring the aircraft down. Flydubai suspended flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv, leaving around 10,000 Israelis temporarily stranded in Dubai or otherwise affected by the interrupted connections.

Further repatriation flights were approved for Monday after the agreement. The measures include stricter screening of passengers and baggage, with checked luggage carried separately from passengers. Israel had also pushed to use its own security checks and scanners in Dubai, but few details of that arrangement have been made public.