Parents ditched baby at Israeli airport to board flight

Parents decided to leave their baby boy at an Israeli airport - because they were running late for their flight and didn't have a ticket for him.

According to a report in CNN, the couple, who haven't been identified and were travelling on Belgian passports, left their infant on the airline check-in counter at the Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv as they tried to jet off and board a Ryanair flight headed to Brussels.

The Israel Airport Authority told the outlet that the couple had "arrived late" for their flight and the "check-in" had closed.

As a result, the parents then "left the infant seat with the baby," running towards the security checkpoint at "Terminal 1" to get to the flight, the airport authority further told CNN.

It's not entirely clear if the parents couldn't get a ticket for their son or just didn't want to.

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A Ryanair spokesperson told CNN that the airport's check-in agent alerted airport security, who got a hold of the passengers.

"This is now a matter for local police," the airline spokesperson said.

The matter seems to have been resolved, and the couple was reunited with their son by the time police got to the scene.

"The baby was with the parents, and there's no further investigation," a spokesman for the Israel Police said.

Ryanair employees were reportedly shocked by the incident that occurred between the parents and infant.

Speaking to K12 News, one staff member said: "We've never seen anything like this. We couldn't believe what we were seeing."

On Ryanair's website, infants who are eight days old to 23 months can travel as long as they are with someone 16 years old or older.

If the infants are seven days old or younger, they are not permitted to fly with Ryanair.

Indy100 reached out to the Israeli Airport Authority for further comment about the matter.

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