Air India Flights Avoid Iranian Airspace Amid Rising Tensions In West Asia

Air India flights today avoided Iranian airspace as tensions soared in the Middle East after Iran warned of a retaliatory attack on Israel.Sources say Air India flights to Europe took longer routes to avoid Iranian airspace.The ‘shadow war’ between the two Middle Eastern countries heated up when an Israeli airstrike hit the Iran consulate in Damascus earlier this month, killing seven people, including two generals.US and other intelligence assessments have said the retaliation could come as soon as Sunday. The unprecedented attack could trigger an all-out regional war.Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had earlier this week warned that Israel “must be punished and will be punished”, days after one of his advisers said Israeli embassies are “no longer safe”.The Israeli military said it had not issued fresh instructions to civilians, but that its forces were on high alert and prepared for a range of scenarios.Countries including India, France and Russia have warned their citizens against travel to the region, already on edge over the war in Gaza, now in its seventh month.