« All applicable legislation was taken into account when issuing a permit »

The Ministry of Infrastructure, when issuing a permit to the Israeli airline Israir, for the purpose of performing regular flights between Tel Aviv and complied with all applicable legislation, is Today in response to the Prime Minister’s calls Robert GolobLeft and NGOs explained to the Minister Alenka Bratusek. She also condemned the events in Gaza.

The Ministry of Infrastructure today explained to the STA that permits to foreign airlines is issued « in accordance with the provisions of the Air Force Act and on the basis of the agreed traffic rights agreed between the bilateral or multilateral agreements ».

“All applicable legislation was taken into account when issuing a permit in February this year, which does not allow any other conduct. If there are any new facts that will allow different behavior, the Ministry of Infrastructure will immediately take appropriate action, « they added.

In doing so, they responded to the call of Prime Minister Golob to clarify the decision to issue a permit to Israir to perform regular flights between Tel Aviv and Ljubljana.

Calls to cancel the permit

The controversy of the issue of the permit to Israir at the time when the calls for sanctions against Israel are strengthened, last week was warned by the Palestinians’ Rights Movement, which, together with more than 20 non -governmental organizations and initiatives, called on Minister Bratušek to cancel the permission of the Israeli airline.

The call was noted, among other things, that « the permit was issued, despite the fact that Israel was accused of genocide before the Hague International Court of Justice, and that the International Criminal Court issued tasks for the arrest of the Israeli political summit for war crimes and crimes against humanity. »

A similar call was addressed to Minister Bratušek today by the Levica coalition party.

« As long as the Israeli state performs genocide, we cannot allow interstate relations to flow normally forward, as if nothing had happened, » the Left said, urging the minister to change the decision to grant a permit to operate Israir.

The Israeli airline is « deeply involved in operations in the area of ​​illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and is on the United Nations list for violations of international law, » they said.

Israir is owned by the third largest Israeli supermarker chain Rami Hashikma Marketings. The chain was already included in the United Nations report in 2020 due to its operation in illegal Israeli settlements on the West Bank.

Armed security guards on aircraft

According to the Dnevnik newspaper, Israir also introduced additional security, including the presence of armed security guards, both on airports and at the Ljubljana Airport, according to the Dnevnik newspaper. The presence of Israeli security guards was also confirmed by the police.

The Dnevnik General Police Directorate explained that Israeli security guards can only carry weapons on the plane and should not be at the airport. Officers of Israeli state bodies in Slovenia also do not have police or other powers.

Some major aviation associations across Europe have been interrupted or restricted by regular flights to Israel due to Israeli aggression in Gaza and lack of security. On the Slovenian Government website for all travel to this country, there is a high level of caution.

The Ministry of Infrastructure explained today that the eligibility of issuing permits to air carriers for the pursuit of activities in Slovenia are judged solely on the basis of international agreements and contracts, the traffic rights awarded and other regulations in the field of aviation, such as security requirements.

They added that the Minister did not participate in the procedures for issuing permits for international air transport. They point out that Minister Bratusek « strongly condemns the events in Gaza and wants the international community to do everything in its power to end violence against the civilian population. »

In addition, the Israir airline also provides international regular air transport to many other EU Member States, and according to the ministry, none of them have yet rejected the consent of Israeli airlines for the provision of international regular air transport.

Israir began its flights between Tel Aviv and Ljubljana this year on May 20, otherwise he has been performing regular flights on this route during the summer season.

It is clear from the records of the ministry that the permit for international regular air transport for the Israir air carrier was first issued in 2003, and permits for the performance of regular flights were also issued to this company in 2022, 2023 and 2024.

The Ministry of Infrastructure also explains that there is no intended or foreseen in the procedure for issuing permits. Needed coordination with other departments because the rules and conditions in the legislation are clearly defined. Nevertheless, today they addressed the foreign ministry « a question related to the existence of a basis that, despite fulfilling the conditions in terms of safety and air traffic protection, Israir can annul the decision or the decision. In the sequel, it does not publish new ones. «