RIYADH: A Saudi airline has restarted flights for Iranian Hajj pilgrims to the kingdom for the first time in nearly ten years, marking another step forward in improving ties between the two nations.
A Saudi civil aviation authority official, speaking anonymously to AFP, confirmed that Flynas resumed flights for Iranian pilgrims from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport on Saturday.
The official also stated that additional flights would be scheduled from Mashhad, enabling over 35,000 Iranian pilgrims to travel to Saudi Arabia via the airline.
Flynas, a low-cost carrier based in Saudi Arabia, operates both domestic and international routes.
The official emphasized that these flights are exclusively for the Hajj pilgrimage and are not commercial services. This year’s Hajj is set to begin in the first week of June, and pilgrims from around the world have already begun arriving in the kingdom.
Ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia were re-established in March 2023 through a surprise China-mediated agreement, ending a seven-year diplomatic break.
Saudi Arabia had cut ties with Iran in 2016 after its embassy in Tehran and consulate in Mashhad were attacked during protests over the execution of Nimr al-Nimr. Since the 2023 reconciliation, both countries have expanded their diplomatic engagement.
They have exchanged ambassadors and conducted foreign ministerial visits, culminating in the first visit by an Iranian president to Saudi Arabia in 20 years when Ebrahim Raisi attended a joint Arab-Islamic summit on Gaza in November 2023.
Additionally, in December 2023, Iran Air resumed flights between Mashhad and Dammam in eastern Saudi Arabia.
Most recently, Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman made a rare visit to Iran, where he met with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
