Algeria suspends flights to Lebanon amid regional tensions

ALGIERS, Algeria

Algeria's flag carrier Air Algerie said Thursday that it suspended its flights to and from Lebanon until further notice.

The airline urged all customers to contact the company's call centers for more information and updates.

The national carrier did not provide a specific reason for the decision. However, it follows similar moves by other airlines, including Kuwait Airways, Royal Jordanian Airlines, Air France, Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines.

The suspension comes amid rising tensions and the potential for a broader conflict between Iran and the Lebanese Hezbollah group on one side and Israel on the other.

It follows the assassination of senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr by Israel on Tuesday and accusations by the Palestinian group Hamas and Iran that Israel assassinated Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas's political bureau, in the Iranian capital Tehran on Wednesday.

Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, the only airport in Lebanon, has previously been targeted during the country's civil war from 1975 to 1989 and in past conflicts with Israel, most recently in the July 2006 war.

Hamas and Iran have vowed to retaliate for Haniyeh's assassination, while Hezbollah has pledged to respond to Shukr's killing.

Meanwhile, international efforts are underway to de-escalate the situation and prevent the conflict from spreading further in the region.

Fears have grown of a full-blown war between Israel and Hezbollah amid a months-long exchange of cross-border fire.

The escalation comes against the backdrop of an Israeli onslaught on Gaza which has killed nearly 39,500 people since last October following an attack by Hamas.

*Witting by Mohammad Sio