From Reuters:
Oman said all airlines could overfly its territory as of Thursday, joining neighboring Saudi Arabia in providing a corridor for the national carriers of Israel, which neither Gulf state formally recognizes.
While Saudi Arabia is staying out of the accords, the regional powerhouse has signalled tacit support by letting Israeli airlines overfly it en route to Abu Dhabi, Dubai or Manama.
In July, U.S. President Joe Biden announced that Riyadh would allow unfettered Israeli overflights. But implementation had been on hold pending the agreement of Oman, as the Saudi corridor extends over its territory for easterly routes.
I hadn't realized that Oman's permission was needed for all Israeli overflights of Saudi Arabia, which was announced to much fanfare last year. So this is indeed a big deal as it cuts the times for Israeli flights to India and further east significantly.
The Mufti of Oman is displeased, though:
The Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman, Sheikh Ahmed bin Hamad al-Khalili, said, "We were surprised by the decision to open the airspace in a way that enables the Zionist entity's aviation to use it."
He added, "We never took that into account, but rather we hoped that the steadfast stance would continue, rejecting any relationship with that entity from our proud authority;...Read More
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