JERUSALEM, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Direct flights between Beijing and Tel Aviv resumed on Thursday, as a Hainan Airlines aircraft successfully landed at Ben-Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv early in the morning, marking the end of an 18-month hiatus.

According to Yu Chaojie, president of Hainan Airlines, the resumed Beijing-Tel Aviv route will operate two round-trip flights per week, on Mondays and Thursdays, with a flight time of approximately nine hours.

The Chinese carrier currently also operates a route connecting Tel Aviv with Shenzhen, a major metropolis in southeastern China.

At a resumption ceremony held in Tel Aviv, Chen Arieli, deputy mayor of Tel Aviv, expressed her appreciation for the return of the flights, emphasizing their role in strengthening the connection between China and Israel.

The Beijing-Tel Aviv route was first launched in April 2016, making the airline the first in China to operate direct flights to Israel. Following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict in October 2023, direct flights from Beijing and Shanghai to Israel were suspended.■