Israel continues to pound Gaza with airstrikes and ground assaults, and Hamas is still launching rockets into Israel.  More than 600 Palestinians and 30 Israelis have been killed in the past 14 days of fighting.  While more than a dozen women and children were among the new casualties on the Gaza side, Hamas rockets landed uncomfortably close to Israel’s Ben Gurion International Airport.

America’s Delta Airlines says a flight was heading to Ben Gurion from New York City had to divert to Paris after after Israeli police confirmed that a rocket landed about one and a half kilometers from Ben Gurion.  It did not strike the airport; but the alarms went off inside the terminals, and people were forced to flee into bomb shelters.

But it was enough for Delta and United Airlines to suspend flights to Israel.  America’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) subsequently ordered the third US carrier that flies to Israel – US Airways – to suspend its Israel-bound flights for 24 hours.  Israel urged the FAA to rescind the order, but caution was the order of the day.

Europe followed suit – Lufthansa, Swiss, KLM, Air France, Air Canada, and Alitalia all suspended flights to Israel, some for 48 hours.

It’s not the first time Hamas targeted Ben Gurion Airport.  Two weeks ago, Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile shield intercepted and destroyed at least two rockets fired towards the airport.