MALE, September 27 (HNS) – A parliament-endorsed resolution is the only way the government can withhold the license to Israel’s national airline to operate flights to the Maldives, Transport Minister Adil Saleem said today. Adil said the government is required, under an agreement made between the Maldives and Israel in 1993 and Israel being a member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), to grant license to Israeli airlines if requested. “This isn’t a license given when the minister wants to. The agreement requires us to grant license if they request to begin flight operations. But it can be stopped by a resolution passed by the parliament. I’ll not give the license if the parliament opts to do so,” he said. The minister further revealed that the ministry had decided to grant the license to Israeli national carrier, El Al Israel Airlines after the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Summit to be held in November. “Everyone is so occupied with the arrangements for the SAARC Summit. The airport and other relevant authorities need to deal with some matters before issuing the license,” he said. El Al applied for the license to operate flights to the Maldives every Tuesday, commencing December 13. Israeli Sun D’Or International Airlines, a subsidiary of El Al, earlier applied to begin chartered flights to the Maldives but was denied license by Maldivian authorities after the Israeli Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) revoked the operating licence of the airline.