Beirut airport sees busy season amid rising regional tensions

The Beirut International Airport, the only international airport in Lebanon, has been busy handling passengers in recent days amid rising regional tensions.

At least 15 countries, including the United States and France, have urged their citizens to leave Lebanon and avoid traveling to the country.

Crowds of people are seen waiting at the departure hall for check in to leave the country, while there are still some coming back from abroad to get together with their family members in the turbulent time.

"I come back to Lebanon [from Dubai] for a holiday. All people around me told me not to go back to Lebanon, but this is my hometown, and I want to come back as I miss my parents. The flights have been adjusted frequently. I was supposed to come back yesterday, but it's postponed to today," said Rebacca, a passenger returning to Beirut.

Confrontations between the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and Israel rose recently after the latter accused Hezbollah of attacking a football pitch in the town of Majdal Shams in the occupied Golan Heights, killing a dozen people. Israel retaliated by launching three missiles last Tuesday evening in Beirut's southern suburbs, killing Fouad Shokor, Hezbollah's top military commander, and seven civilians.

According to Lebanon's national news agency, the Israeli army launched multiple rounds of attacks on the Lebanese side of the temporary Lebanon-Israel border on Tuesday, causing many casualties.

On the same day, the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that the Israeli side of the temporary border was attacked by rockets and drones from the Lebanese side, which triggered air defense alarms in many places and caused many injuries, and the Israeli army hit Lebanese Hezbollah weapons depots and other targets.

Hezbollah Leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday vowed a strong and impactful retaliation to the assassination of its senior military commander, Fouad Shokor, Al-Manar local TV channel reported.

Nasrallah also threatened to attack factories in northern Israel, each according to Nasrallah, worth billions of U.S. dollars.

Beirut airport sees busy season amid rising regional tensions

Beijing, capital of China, saw an increased number of inbound visits during this year's three-day Qingming Festival holiday which started on Friday, according to data from the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism.

Data shows that Beijing recorded over 9.59 million visits during the holiday, indicating a 6.2-percent increase compared with the same period in 2024. Based on the visits, the city saw a total tourism expenditure of 11.5 billion yuan (about 1.57 billion U.S. dollars), up 9.5 percent year on year.

Among the figures, the city received 69,000 visits made by overseas inbound tourists, a year-on-year increase of 45.6 percent. International tourism expenditure in Beijing reached 740 million yuan (about 101.19 million U.S. dollars), indicating a significant year-on-year growth of 46.2 percent.

Qingming Festival is a traditional Chinese holiday that falls on the 15th day after the Spring Equinox. Often seen as a time to enjoy the greenery of springtime and to visit the graves of ancestors, the holiday has also become a busy period for cultural and tourism activities in China.

Inbound visits to Beijing see robust increase during Qingming holiday