Ethiopian Airlines has announced it will no long operate flights to Asmara. The airline announced it would no longer be offering flights to the capital of Eritrea as of September 3. The airline was forced to cancel flights due to “very difficult operational circumstances” that it encountered in Eritrea.
Ethiopian Airlines announced that it would do all in its power to rebook the passengers affected by this incident on other airlines, without any additional costs.
The airline’s CEO, Mesfin Tasew, told a news conference that the Eritrean Civil Aviation Authority had frozen Ethiopian Airlines’ bank account.
The Eritrean government had previously threatened to suspend flights from Ethiopian Airlines by the end of September, according to Reuters.
In 2018, flights between Eritrea and Ethiopia resumed after a 20 year suspension. Ethiopia and Eritrea’s relationship is lukewarm, but has grown more antagonistic since the 30-year war ended in 2018.
