Israeli minister flies to US amid Iran attack

While air travel in Israel remains heavily restricted due to the ongoing conflict with Iran, Social Equality Minister May Golan has travelled to the United States.

She left for New York on Monday (March 9) to attend a United Nations event marking International Women's Day.

Israeli journalist Uri Misgav confirmed the trip on social media, posting a photo of Golan seated in business class on a flight.

Her travel comes at a time when Israel’s airports are operating at very limited capacity due to fears of Iranian ballistic missile attacks. For many Israeli citizens and foreign tourists, leaving the country has become extremely difficult.

Israel’s airspace has been largely closed since February 28, after Israel and the United States launched a major military strike on Iran. Iran later responded by firing missiles toward Israel.

Amid the escalating tensions, the US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, advised American citizens seeking to leave the country to use the Egyptian land border.

Flights partially resumed at Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday, allowing a few hundred passengers to depart. However, strict restrictions remain in place, with only two small aircraft permitted to operate per hour and passenger capacity limited to around 70–100 people per flight.

Golan’s trip has drawn criticism from opposition figures. Opposition leader and lawmaker Vladimir Belyak condemned the visit in a post on the social media platform X.

He said that at a time when many citizens feel stranded during the war and the ministry’s budget has been reduced, travelling to the UN with a large delegation sends the wrong message. Public anger has grown, particularly as many people are struggling to obtain flight tickets while a government minister travels abroad in business class.