United Airlines Returns to Tel Aviv, Iran War Exit Sought
United Airlines resumes Newark–Tel Aviv flights in September, while the US Joint Chiefs chairman seeks a diplomatic exit from the Iran war.
United Airlines Returns to Tel Aviv, Iran War Exit Sought — United Airlines will resume nonstop flights between Newark and Tel Aviv on September 8, 2026, with two daily flights, after the route was suspended when Israel's airspace closed to most commercial traffic on February 28, 2026, at the onset of the US-Israel war with Iran.[^1] The return signals a cautious reopening of civilian travel even as the war grinds into its sixth month. Meanwhile, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, is seeking an exit path from the war with Iran. In closed conversations, Caine has made clear that military options for escalation could backfire and that airstrikes alone will not subdue Iran.[^2] Israeli outlets frame this as a shift toward diplomacy, while US reports emphasize the limits of military pressure.[^3] Iranian diplomats are under heavy pressure from the Revolutionary Guards and the hardline camp to secure immediate economic gains in any deal, even as the US Senate overwhelmingly approved (86-11) a sanctions bill that would allow tariffs of up to 100% on imports from the five largest buyers of Russian oil and gas, and up to 500% on direct imports from Russia.[^4][^5] The tension between economic relief and military recognition remains unresolved. In Montenegro, Rabbi Ari Edelkopf, who heads the Religious Jewish Community of Montenegro, says "the situation has changed," as the tiny community of fewer than 1,000 navigates rising hostility toward Israel. Israeli tourism remains strong—110,249 Israelis visited in 2025, up from 73,513 in 2024—but a violent brawl in Budva on July 12, 2025, between locals and 20 Israeli tourists left most injured, one with a broken jaw. Eisenkot's Beach Confrontation and the Fracturing of Israeli Politics — At Metzitzim Beach today (Friday), Yashar chairman Gadi Eisenkot refused to speak with Mordechai David, a right-wing activist who had previously harassed former Shin Bet chief Yoram Cohen. When David asked to pose "one question about the war," Eisenkot replied: "I only cooperate with those who served in the army - go serve and come back to me."[^1] Police removed David from the event.[^1] Earlier this week, Da