All flights in and out of Beirut's Rafiq Hariri International Airport are required to first stop in Jordan for security checks, the Jordan Times newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Director of the Jordan Civil Aviation Authority Captain Suleiman Obeidat was quoted as saying that the secondary inspection is conducted by an airport security unit and is in line with the international security inspection codes followed by airports worldwide.

According to the report, all flights in and out of Beirut would be routed through Amman where passengers would stay on board for a transit time.

No reason has been given for the secondary inspection, but the report said that the enforced stop in Amman was a condition set by Israel.

On Monday, Lebanon's national carrier Middle East Airlines (MEA) announced that it has resumed flights to all international destinations. Meanwhile, Royal Jordanian airlines (RJ) also gradually increases its flights to Beirut.

RJ and MEA are currently the only carriers flying to Beirut.

The first MEA commercial passenger plane arrived in Beirut from Amman on Thursday after Israel imposed an air blockade on Lebanon following the eruption of Israel-Hezbollah conflict in July.

(Xinhua News Agency August 23, 2006)