A TUS Airways flight from Bologna, Italy, to Ben Gurion Airport was delayed for approximately three hours Monday after Israeli immigration authorities instructed the airline to remove three Georgian passengers.

Two of the passengers were found to be attempting to travel to Israel using forged Israeli passports. The third was determined to be barred from entering the country.

Following their removal, all remaining passengers were asked to leave the aircraft, and the luggage was unloaded for additional inspection.

One passenger, Idit, said travelers were given little explanation about the disruption.

“After those three passengers were taken off the plane, we were all taken off as well so our belongings could undergo another inspection,” she said. “They didn’t explain why the flight was delayed or why they had us get off.”

The Kavim Holidays tourism group said staff at Bologna Airport had been instructed by Israel’s immigration authorities to remove the three passengers for further checks.

TUS Airways said passenger and crew safety remains its highest priority and that it cooperates fully with aviation authorities in Israel and internationally.

The airline emphasized that passengers and crew were not in danger at any point during the incident.

The disruption comes amid heightened Israeli vigilance following the attempted terrorist attack five days earlier aboard an Israel-bound Flydubai flight, in which an Omani terrorist co-pilot attempted to crash the aircraft.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)