Iran's Imam Khomeini International Airport resumed limited international passenger flights on Saturday after more than 50 days of suspension, with passenger traffic expected to recover gradually as routes reopen in phases.
Destinations including Medina in Saudi Arabia, Muscat in Oman and Istanbul in Türkiye were among the first to reopen, as travelers took to the skies for the first time since the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on the country, prompting Iranian retaliatory attacks on Israeli and U.S. targets across several countries in the region.
For many passengers, the reopening brought long-awaited reunions with loved ones abroad.
"I am traveling to Istanbul to visit my daughter. She is a student. It has been very difficult. I couldn't stay in touch with her because we didn't have internet. I'm very happy that flights have resumed," said Narges, a passenger at the airport.
Others said the suspension had forced them to attempt difficult overland journeys, only to remain stuck for weeks.
"This is the first flight that allows us to finally send our child to Frankfurt. She is a student. We tried once or twice to reach Frankfurt by land through Ankara, but we were stuck for nearly 50 days. We are very happy now," said Abolfazl, a passenger.
Some travelers remained concerned, saying the ceasefire between the United States and Iran felt fragile.
"We are worried because of the war. We heard some thuds in Tehran a few nights ago. No one knows what will happen," said a passenger who gave his name as Hassan.
Airport officials said only a handful of destinations were currently available, but the gradual return of international flights marks a cautious step toward normalization, with key international routes still in the planning stage.
"Flights to Beijing and other Chinese cities have long been a major part of this airport's schedule and remain so. Cargo flights are definitely operating. Passenger flights, as I mentioned, are being planned for implementation," said Ramin Kashef Azar, CEO of Imam Khomeini Airport City.
Tehran's largest airport resumes int’l flights after more than 50 days
Politicians and commentators from around the world have warned that recent moves by the Japanese government to revise the country's constitution and ease restrictions on arms exports could undermine Japan's post-war pacifist stance and destabilize regional peace.
The Japanese government on Tuesday officially revised its Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology and implementation guidelines to allow overseas sales of weapons, including those with lethal capabilities, despite public opposition.
U.S. political commentator Tim Shorrock said the move signals a dangerous shift toward hardline conservatism, rooted in a persistent reluctance to fully acknowledge Japan's wartime actions.
"I think it's actually very dangerous for regional security because now Japan is becoming led by some very, very conservative people who often deny Japan's aggressive role in World War II, deny its crimes against comfort women during World War II, deny its cruel colonization of Korea, the Korean Peninsula, deny its terrible crimes in China from the thirties until the end of World War II," he said.
Shorrock said Japan's moves to revise its pacifist Constitution mark a sharp departure from the public support Article 9 enjoyed in the post-war era.
"In that post-war period, vast majority of Japanese citizens supported Article 9, supported the ban on Japan becoming a militarized nation, and a ban on making war ever again. And bit by bit, the LDP has chipped away at this Constitution, and now Prime Minister Takaichi wants to do away with this -- the Article 9 -- and they are pushing very hard. I think that's a real repudiation of the peace," he said.
Yeidckol Polevnsky, chair of the Asia-Pacific Committee of the Mexican Senate, said Japan appears to be moving away from its long-standing image as a peace-oriented country, despite public unease.
"I think that in Japan's case, there is still a very old debt owed to China. After World War II, Germany apologized to the Jewish people and paid compensation for the damage it caused. But Japan has even been attempting to hide this. I see a significant shift happening in Japan, because for many years, Japan tried to reach out to the world to erase its image from World War II as a warmongering country. But today I find the situation in Japan truly distressing and very sad. I believe that even the Japanese people themselves do not agree with what is happening," she said.
Int'l observers warn Japan is drifting away from post-war pacifist stance
