Israel’s El Al Airlines will be operating on Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, for the first time in four decades to fly home Israeli reservists, “as well as security and rescue forces stranded abroad,” the Times of Israel reported Thursday.
El Al is using two Boeing 787s to bring the forces to Israel, with one of the flights departing from New York City, New York, and another from Bangkok, Thailand, the outlet’s Sharon Wrobel noted. These will mark the airline’s first Sabbath flights since 1982.
Reservists alongside security and rescue forces will not pay for the flights, which will be covered by the airline “and large US financial institutions,” per the Times of Israel, citing an El Al statement.
The report adds that the flights this coming Sabbath are regarded under the Hebrew philosophy “pikuah nefesh:”
El Al says breaking its decades-long policy of not flying on the Jewish Sabbath has received halachic approval as the rescue flights are considered part of what is known in Hebrew as pikuah nefesh — the Jewish legal principle that saving a life trumps nearly all other religious requirements.
The Times’s report comes as El Al, along with other Israeli airlines, Arkia and Israir, expanded their schedules on Tuesday to bring home reservists, as Reuters reported:
On its website, Israir Airlines (ISRG.TA) said it was offering flights from Larnaca in Cyprus, Corfu in Greece and Batumi in Georgia to help bring Israelis back to the country.
Arkia was offering flights from Greek capital Athens to Eilat in southern Israel and from Marrakesh in Morocco to Tel Aviv, among others.
Flag carrier El Al (ELAL.TA) added a flight from Athens on Tuesday. El Al added that, while it wasn’t offering free flights for reservists, it was trying to keep prices affordable. Reservists were being charged $900 for flying from the United States, $650 from Bangkok, and $300 from Europe for flights under four hours, a spokesperson said.
The mobilization of reservists comes as Israel has officially declared war for the first time in 50 years in the aftermath of Hamas terrorist attacks.
Related: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: How Hamas Took Israel by Surprise
So far the terrorist incursion has taken upwards 1,300 Israeli lives and left more than 3,000 wounded.
Moreover, reports indicate another 150 Israelis have been abducted.
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