Trump Lifts Lebanon Flight Ban Amid Middle East Violence

President Donald Trump revoked a 41-year flight ban between the United States and Lebanon, allowing American carriers to resume direct flights. The restrictions were originally imposed by the Reagan administration in 1985 following the hijacking of TWA Flight 847. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun welcomed the decision, stating it indicates U.S. confidence in Lebanon's civil aviation safety improvements. The diplomatic shift follows a period in which Hezbollah was weakened by two wars with Israel.

Simultaneously, violence escalated across the region. Houthi rebels launched missile attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, killing three Saudi citizens and damaging three aircraft. In response, Trump stated he is evaluating whether the United States should join Saudi strikes against the Houthis. In Gaza, Israeli military strikes killed five Palestinians, with Israel reporting that it targeted Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters.

Further instability was reported in Africa and the Persian Gulf. A drone strike attributed to the Rapid Support Forces killed at least 40 people, including children, in the Abu Shandi area of Sudan's Blue Nile province. Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates national guard rescued 22 crew members from a burning oil tanker in the Persian Gulf. The U.S. Department of Defense also updated its Middle East death toll during the Iran war to 21 personnel.