Amid the latest escalation between Iran and the United States, Washington has suspended the withdrawal of its military tanker aircraft from Tel Aviv’s airport. The move drew a protest from the Israel Airport Authority, which warned that the parked planes could occupy critical space at the country’s main airport and lead to cancellations of commercial flights.
A month earlier, Ben Gurion Airport, located on the outskirts of Tel Aviv, had warned that up to 15 U.S. aircraft—stationed there since the start of the war with Iran on February 28—needed to be removed or commercial flights might be canceled.
After an announcement of an agreement between Iran and the United States to end the conflict, several of the 72 aircraft that remained at Ben Gurion were relocated to military bases within Israel.
Currently, according to Israel’s Channel 12 and confirmed by the Transportation Ministry, the United States has frozen the withdrawal of the remaining aircraft—without specifying how many—prompting renewed complaints from the Israel Airport Authority.
In a letter published by an Israeli outlet, a senior official from the Airport Authority warned that the suspension has an “immediate and serious” operational impact.
There is concern about the potential effect on up to 50,000 commercial flight bookings, which prompted the Airport Authority to ask the Israeli Defense Ministry to find a solution that does not harm travelers.
The U.S. decision to keep the aircraft in place comes as tensions with Iran escalate, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he had canceled the preliminary agreement intended to end the conflict.
This renewed escalation is reflected in daily U.S. attacks on Iranian territory and Iran’s retaliatory strikes in Gulf countries and Jordan.
Donald Trump’s remarks
President Donald Trump said U.S. forces control the Strait of Hormuz, defended the military offensive against Iran, and confirmed he would maintain a maritime blockade against the Islamic Republic. He also asserted that the campaign has destroyed much of Iran’s military capabilities and reiterated that his administration will prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon.
In an interview with Newsmax on Monday night, Trump justified the U.S. strikes, saying: “We are attacking Iran right now, and they deserve it because they are not going to have a nuclear weapon, that we can guarantee with absolute certainty.” He stressed that preventing Iran from obtaining such a weapon is one of his administration’s main objectives.
Asked about the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, a key global route for oil and gas shipments, the president said U.S. forces control the area. “We control it. They can cause problems. They can do things that are not right. But we control it,” he said.
Trump also attributed significant damage to Iran’s defensive infrastructure to the military campaign. “We have destroyed most of their radar, much of their ammunition, many of their weapon launchers. We have destroyed drones. We have destroyed missiles,” he said describing the scope of the operations.
In that context, the president confirmed his administration will reimpose a maritime blockade on Iran. “The blockade was a tremendous success. It was in place for two months and no one could pass. We are putting that in place. We will allow everyone through, except if you do business with Iran,” he said during the interview.