Hebrew media outlets reported that a FlyDubai aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, while en route to Tel Aviv.
According to the Israeli newspaper Maariv, the plane was carrying around 80 Israeli passengers when the pilot was compelled to land in the Saudi capital after one passenger reportedly suffered a medical emergency — a stroke.
Flight Details
Aviation tracking platforms confirmed that the aircraft was operating Flight FZ1125, which departed from Dubai International Airport at 4:17 p.m. local time, bound for Ben Gurion Airport. The plane was diverted and landed in Riyadh at approximately 5:45 p.m.
Similar Incident Last Month
The report added that this was not the first occurrence. Just last month, an Israeli aircraft made a similar unscheduled stop in Saudi Arabia while returning to Tel Aviv from the Seychelles in Africa.
Normalisation Flights Continue Uninterrupted
Daily flights between the United Arab Emirates and Israel have not ceased since the signing of the normalisation agreement in 2020. On some days, the number of flights reaches up to 14 per day, reflecting the ongoing and deepening ties between the two states despite regional opposition.
Saudi Arabia’s Position
Although Saudi Arabia publicly maintains its refusal to normalise relations with the occupation entity before the fulfilment of the Arab Peace Initiative conditions, Riyadh has nonetheless permitted Israeli aircraft to utilise Saudi airspace for civilian travel.
