Israel, Egypt to open Tel Aviv-Sharm El-Sheikh flight route

JERUSALEM

Israel said Wednesday it has agreed with Egypt to launch a direct flight route between Tel Aviv and the Red Sea resort city of Sharm El-Sheikh.

The new flight route is expected to start as of April, the Israeli Prime Minister's office said in a statement.

The issue of establishing a new flight route was first raised between Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi during their meeting in September in Sharm El-Sheikh, the statement said.

According to the statement, talks on security measures for the flight route were discussed between the Israeli security services, including Israel's domestic intelligence service Shin-Bet, and the Egyptian security authorities.

"This is another step in warming the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt," Bennett said, commenting on the announcement.
There was no comment from the Egyptian authorities on the report.

In September, Bennett visited Egypt for the first official trip in 10 years, where he met with al-Sisi.

In 1979, Egypt and Israel signed a peace treaty in Washington, ending a military conflict between the two countries.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar