Jerusalem, 15 June, 2022 (TPS) — Israel has agreed to open its skies for international flights that will cross from and to the World Cup games in Qatar.

Israel does not have diplomatic relations with Qatar.

The Airports Authority and the Israeli Air Force have reached an agreement with Jordan and Eurocontrol, the European Organization for the Safety of Air Navigation, to open Israel’s airspace during the World Cup and to allow airlines short and straight routes from Europe and America to Qatar and back.

Israel will manage the air traffic that will cross Israel from the Cypriot airspace to the Jordanian area to the east, and vice versa to the west.

The flight forecast for the World Cup month over Israel shows an increase of hundreds of percent in the number of flights that will cross the Israeli space on the way and back from the Gulf country.

Transport Minister Merav Michaeli stated Wednesday that Israel is “showing a sportive spirit and is allowing its air borders to be opened for the benefit of flights and pilots. I welcome the collaborations and am happy to strengthen more regional collaborations.”

On Thursday, Israel announced that its citizens will be able to fly to Qatar to watch the soccer matches. After diplomatic negotiations that included representatives of FIFA, the world soccer federation, Qatar agreed to allow entry for Israelis using their Israeli passports.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international men’s football championship contested by the senior national teams of the member associations of FIFA, is scheduled to take place in Qatar from 21 November to 18 December 2022.