Lebanon does not intend to close its international airport after the holiday season is over, Director-General of Civil Aviation at Rafik Hariri International Airport Fadi El-Hasan confirmed.
During a recent appearance on OTV, El-Hasan said there is no tendency to close Beirut airport after the holidays, “as those coming from abroad are active in the economic and tourism movement, and the measures that we take are sufficient.”
An average of 5,000 daily passengers have been landing in Beirut between December 1st and 24th, the official said, adding that it is a “good number.” The majority of these passengers are Lebanese expatriates, mostly arriving from Turkey and Arab Gulf countries.
Notably, since the UK confirmed a new strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) earlier this week, 3 cases of the disease have been recorded aboard flights arriving in Beirut from London.
These cases gave rise to questions about whether they were of the second strain of the virus.
According to El-Hasan, “it cannot be asserted that the three cases of COVID-19 that were recorded on the plane coming from London are of the new strain.”
With that said, he noted that all arrivals from London will be exceptionally monitored, adding that their daily numbers do not exceed 160 passengers.