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Israir Airlines said Thursday it plans to open direct flights between Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi after Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed to normalise relations.
The Israeli airline “will offer direct flights to Abu Dhabi as soon as the final authorisations are obtained,” it announced in a statement.
“We are moved to be able to announce direct flights to Abu Dhabi,” said Gil Stav, Israir’s deputy chief executive.
Israel and the UAE are set to sign the US-brokered agreement at the White House on Tuesday next week.
It is Israel’s first such agreement with a Gulf nation and only its third with an Arab state, after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994.
Israir says it is the Jewish state’s second biggest airline.
Its announcement comes 10 days after a US-Israeli delegation led by White House adviser Jared Kushner flew to Abu Dhabi on the first commercial flight from Tel Aviv since the Israel-UAE deal was announced.
The landmark direct flight was operated by Israel’s national carrier El Al.