US lifts 41-year direct flight ban on Beirut after Trump order

WASHINGTON, United States — WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order lifting the US ban on direct flights to Beirut, ending a restriction that had been in place since 1985. The move allows American airlines to operate direct services to Lebanon for the first time in more than four decades. Trump announced the decision on his Truth Social account following a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun at the White House, saying he had instructed his administration to permit US carriers to fly directly to Lebanon so that Americans could visit the country more easily. The original ban dates back to the June 14, 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847, which had departed Athens for Rome. The 153 passengers on board were held during a 17-day hostage crisis in which the aircraft was shuttled between Beirut and Algiers, and US Navy diver Robert Stethem was beaten to death on the plane. US investigations linked the attack to Hezbollah, and indictments were issued against three Lebanese nationals in connection with the hijacking. Trump's order ends one of the longest-running US travel restrictions involving Lebanon.