Yasser Arafat International Airport
Yasser Arafat International Airport مطار ياسر عرفات الدولي | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The airport in 2005 | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Defunct | ||||||||||
| Operator | Palestinian Civil Aviation Authority | ||||||||||
| Location | Gaza Strip | ||||||||||
| Opened | 24 November 1998 | ||||||||||
| Closed | 2001 | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 98 m / 320 ft | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 31°14′47″N 34°16′34″E / 31.24639°N 34.27611°E | ||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
| |||||||||||
Yasser Arafat International Airport (Arabic: مطار ياسر عرفات الدولي Maṭār Yāsir 'Arafāt ad-Dawli) (IATA: GZA, ICAO: LVGZ) was an airport in the Gaza Strip. It was located between Rafah and Dahaniya, close to the Egyptian border. The facility was built as a result of the Oslo Accords and opened on 24 November 1998 as Gaza International Airport. It served as the base of Palestinian Airlines. The airport ceased operations in 2001 during the Second Intifada. It was renamed in honour of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat following his death in 2004. The Gaza airport was progressively destroyed by Israel during the intifada and later conflicts and by looting.