By Micah Halpern
I've Been Thinking:
The US Department of Transportation has ruled that Kuwaiti Airlines was in violation of US law by not allowing an Israeli named Eldad Gatt to travel on their airline from JFK in NYC to Heathrow in London in 2013.
Gatt complained to the DOT. At first they rejected his claim. He appealed and the DOT found Kuwaiti Airlines in violation.
Kuwaiti Airlines said that they were following their laws which prohibit any business with Israelis or with Israel. The punishment for violating that law in Kuwait is very strict and includes imprisonment and hard labor.
The DOT ruled that "We considered Mr. Gatt's claim upon an alternative ground ... which holds that an 'air carrier or foreign air carrier may not subject a person, place, port, or type of traffic in foreign air transportation to unreasonable discrimination."
The DOT said that Kuwaiti laws do not outweigh the US law against discrimination where the destination permits Israelis to take off and land.
Kuwait appealed the ruling on November 23.
In response, Kuwait has simply shut down their NYC London route. It was very profitable route but they decided to close it rather than lose to the DOT while the case is in appeal.
Kuwaiti Air still flies from NYC to Kuwait and Israelis are not permitted to purchase a ticket. That does not violate US law because Kuwait does not allow Israeli passport holders to enter their country.
Micah@MicahHalpern.com
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