Iran has suspended all incoming flights to Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport “until further notice” after launching a wave of ballistic missile strikes against Israel on Sunday, local Iranian media reported.
The closure applies to inbound traffic at the country’s primary international gateway, Iran’s main hub for connecting passengers and cargo to Europe, the Gulf and Asia.
Imam Khomeini Airport — the larger of Tehran’s two airports — had reopened only in April after being shut for several weeks during the previous phase of Iran’s confrontation with the United States and Israel. The Mehrabad domestic airport, on the western edge of Tehran, was not mentioned in the announcement.
The shutdown is consistent with previous Iranian aviation actions taken at moments of acute military exchange and is typically intended to clear the country’s air defence picture of inbound civilian traffic during operations and any expected retaliation.
The Israel Defense Forces said early Monday that its air force had struck military targets in western and central Iran — including reported blasts in Tehran, Tabriz and Isfahan — hours after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards fired missiles at Israel’s Ramat David Airbase in retaliation for Israeli strikes on Beirut.
The airport closure adds to disruption that has cascaded out from the wider conflict for Sri Lankan travellers and freight. Sri Lankan carriers and code-share partners have repeatedly rerouted or cancelled services through the wider Middle East since the war reopened in early June.
The Imam Khomeini suspension is open-ended and dependent on the security situation. There is no timetable for resumption.
Source: Ada Derana — Iran halts flights at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini airport (BBC wire).
