JERUSALEM, May 4 (Reuters) - European and U.S. carriers

cancelled flights for the next several days after a missile

fired by Yemen's Houthi rebels on Sunday landed near Israel's

Ben Gurion International Airport, the country's main

international airport.

Many foreign airlines subsequently suspended flights to and

from Tel Aviv. Following a ceasefire deal with Palestinian

militant group Hamas in January, foreign carriers had begun to

resume flights to Israel after halting them for much of the last

year and a half, although with less capacity and frequency.

That left flag carrier El Al Airlines - along with

smaller rivals Arkia and Israir - with a near

monopoly, full flights and higher air fares.

Delta Air Lines ( DAL ) said it had cancelled Sunday's

flight from JFK in New York to Tel Aviv and the return flight

from Tel Aviv on Monday. United, though, had yet to

cancel its flights from Newark. Flights from Tel Aviv on Delta

and United departed about 90 minutes late.

Lufthansa Group, which includes Lufthansa, Swiss,

Brussels and Austrian, said it had halted flights to and from

Tel Aviv through Tuesday due to the current situation.

ITA said it had cancelled flights from Italy to Israel

through Wednesday, while Air France cancelled flights on Sunday,

saying customers were transferred to flights on Monday. TUS

flights to and from Cyprus were cancelled through Monday, while

Air India flights from New Delhi were halted on Sunday.

Ryanair suspended flights on Sunday but flights are still

scheduled for Monday, according to the Israel Airports

Authority.

Aegean, flydubai and Ethiopian did not cancel flights.

Udi Bar Oz, head of Ben Gurion Airport, said the airport was

up and running less than 30 minutes after the missile hit a road

nearby. He said the airport and Transportation Minister were

providing information to carriers to minimize damage to flight

schedules in the coming days.

Claiming responsibility for the strike that sent a plume of

smoke into the air and caused panic among passengers in the

terminal building, the Houthis' military spokesperson, Yahya

Saree, said Israel's main airport was "no longer safe for air

travel".

The Houthis, who control swathes of Yemen, began targeting

Israel and Red Sea shipping in late 2023, during the early days

of the war between Hamas and Israel in the Gaza Strip.

U.S. President Donald Trump in March ordered large-scale

strikes against the Houthis to reduce their capabilities and

deter them from targeting commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to respond to the

Houthis. "We attacked in the past, we will attack in the future

... There will be more blows," he said.