New El Al routes open while Yom Kippur and a Red Sea escalation set the near-term risk

El Al resumes Tel Aviv–San Francisco nonstop service on Oct. 25, three times weekly on the 787-9. That is 813 seats a week each way, including 32 Business and 35 Premium Economy. El Al is the only nonstop operator on the route, and United is not back on SFO–TLV until 2027. West Coast itineraries can be rebuilt without an East Coast or European connection, and premium and group inventory opens up. Israir also began new JFK flights this week, and El Al plans 42 weekly US flights in November, 16 of them to JFK.

Separately, El Al's Sun D'Or will start Tel Aviv–Marrakech flights on Nov. 16, a direct Israel–Morocco link for combined itineraries. Only the announcement headline is available. Confirm schedule, frequency and fares with the carrier before quoting.

Yom Kippur starts Sunday evening, Sept. 20. The IDF has put the Air Force and Navy on heightened readiness across all fronts, and the Gaza crossing closes Sunday and Monday. Israel normally shuts down almost completely on the holiday, including most transport, and Ben Gurion normally has no commercial operations. The sources here do not confirm airport operations this year, so verify flight schedules directly with carriers.

Clients arriving or departing around Sept. 20–22 should expect disruption. Re-check transfers, guides and tours booked around the holiday now, and confirm that clients on the ground have a plan for Sunday evening through Monday.

The Houthis have taken Yemen's Red Sea coast, including Mocha, Perim and the Hanish islands, and now effectively control the Bab el-Mandeb strait. Riyadh issued its first air-raid alert since fighting resumed. A drone strike by Iraqi militias on the Saudi East-West pipeline is expected to keep it offline for three to five weeks. Trump says the US is talking with the Houthis and that they would like a deal.

This is a Gulf and Red Sea escalation, not a confirmed threat to Israel-bound travel. Advisors should watch Eilat and Red Sea itineraries, any Houthi launches toward Israel, airspace changes over Saudi Arabia and the Gulf, and carrier and insurer routing. No State Department or FCDO language change on Israel appears in these sources.

During the Iran war, which began Feb. 28 and ended in an April ceasefire, more than 3,000 flights to and from Israel were cancelled. Nearly 600,000 passengers received cancellation notices, about 100,000 of them on North America routes. El Al still moved about 110,000 passengers on 800 flights under a special schedule.

For advisors, this is a concrete basis for carrier selection and contingency planning. When foreign carriers suspend service, El Al is likely to be the one still flying. That is worth pricing into protection and rebooking advice, especially with the new US capacity coming online this autumn.

A record algae bloom, tied to a warmer Mediterranean, clogged seawater intake filters and shut desalination plants on Israel's central and southern coast for weeks. Hotels from Tel Aviv south rely on desalinated water, and beach conditions are a client-facing issue for coastal stays.

The source does not say any hotels were affected. Before booking coastal properties, ask about water supply and beach conditions, and expect the problem to recur.

The UK has imposed a trade embargo on settlement goods, and 12 governments including Canada issued a joint statement backing sanctions on the West Bank or considering them. Ireland will also skip Eurovision 2027 over Israel's participation.

None of this changes a booking or an advisory. It does show sentiment in Western Europe and the Commonwealth moving against Israel, which advisors selling to UK, Irish and Canadian clients may meet as hesitation or questions. Watch for any change to FCDO language on Israel, though none appears in these sources.