“An innocent mistake” made by a crew member on an international flight from Italy to Tel Aviv caused a massive uproar in Israel. According to media reports, the Irish budget airline Ryanair faced boycott calls in the Jewish country earlier this week after one of its officials announced in Italian and English language that the flight was bound for Palestine. The announcement, which came as a major transgression for Israeli passengers, caused intense dispute on the flight.
Some passengers even tried to get the attendant to “correct” herself; however, she refused and even accused some of them of endangering her safety.
Ryanair issues apology
On Thursday, Ryanair airline issued an apology for the incident, calling it an “innocent mistake.” In a statement issued to the UK’s Jewish Chronicle, the airline said, “A junior crew member on this flight from Bologna to Tel Aviv (10 June) made a routine descent PA mistakenly saying ‘Palestine’ instead of ‘Tel Aviv.’ This was an innocent mistake with no intent and was immediately corrected and apologized for by the senior crew member on board.”
Eddie Wilson, the CEO of the airline, said he was “100% satisfied that this was an innocent mistake with no political overtones or intent”. Wilson said that Israel was an “important partner” for Ryanair, adding that it was Israel’s second-largest airline.
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“We plan to invest in Israel to grow traffic and connectivity both for Israelis travelling to Europe and also to bring much-needed inbound tourism to Israel,” Wilson said.
Why Tel Aviv is a sensitive issue for the Israelis?
The city of Tel Aviv has been a subject of dispute between those advocating for Palestinian independence and those recognising the region’s historical ties to Jewish settlers in the early 20th century. Many view any claims suggesting that the contested territory rightfully belongs to Palestinians as an attempt to undermine Israel’s sovereignty. The use of the name Palestine instead of Israel for Tel Aviv is thus regarded as highly provocative in the Jewish country.
Tel Aviv serves as the major financial and technological hub of Israel, attracting international attention and hosting numerous foreign embassies.
In December 2017, former US President Donald Trump made an announcement declaring his intention to relocate the American Embassy to Jerusalem, recognising it as the true capital of Israel. This decision received criticism from Palestinian leaders and pro-Palestinian organisations at the time.
