Ryanair Flight

The refusal was due to the EU sanctions banning Russian flights in European airspace

They made that decision after they determined that two Belarusian helicopters had violated Polish airspace.
"It was established that today, August 1, 2023, there was a violation of Polish airspace by two Belarusian helicopters that were conducting training near the border," the ministry said in a statement.

The Council of Europe on Monday said several EU candidate countries in the Balkans had aligned themselves with the Council Decision to strengthen restrictive measures on Belarus by introducing a ban on the overflight of EU airspace and access to EU airports of Belarusian carriers of all kinds.

Echoing the forced landing of a Ryanair flight travelling between two EU member states and the arrest of political activist Roman Protasevich in Belarus, the European Parliament has called for further sanctions on the hardline regime in Minsk.

A top American diplomat told Congress on Wednesday that the Biden administration plans to impose additional sanctions on the authoritarian regime in Belarus — a significant step as lawmakers agitate for tougher punishments against a top ally of Vladimir Putin.

A plane that landed at Paphos International Airport was struck by lightning on Tuesday, with reports saying Ryanair passengers were unharmed during the incident.