NICOSIA, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of people leaving Israel in the wake of the fighting between the Israeli Army and Hamas forces are arriving in Cyprus, a spokeswoman for the country's airports said on Monday.
Several international airlines have announced the suspension of flights to and from Tel Aviv following the surprise attack by Hamas militants on Saturday.
"At Larnaca Airport, both yesterday and today there were several emergency flights from and to Israel. Today (Monday) we expect 20 departures and 20 arrivals to the neighboring country, of which 11 were scheduled in the last 24 hours," Maria Kouroupi, senior director of aviation development and communication of Hermes Airports, said.
Kouroupi told state-run Cyprus News Agency that flights from Israel are full of people fleeing the country, either foreign nationals or Israelis who seek shelter in Cyprus. Those departing are mainly Israelis, she said.
Kouroupi said Larnaca Airport, just a 40-minute flight away from Tel Aviv, has prepared to act as transit station in case it becomes necessary to evacuate foreign nationals from Israel.
Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides said on Sunday night that security authorities had tightened controls in several parts of Cyprus to deal with possible attacks against Israeli targets or individual Israelis living in Cyprus. ■