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Qatar has prevented the landing of Saudi airplanes dispatched to transport Qatar pilgrims to the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia’s official news agency SPA reported on Sunday.
Saudi Arabia, which has broken off diplomatic relations with Qatar since June 5, on Wednesday ordered the reopening of its land border with the emirate and promised to charter seven flights of the Saudi national company to transport Qatar pilgrims since Doha on the occasion of the hajj. Riyadh has closed its airspace since June to the Qatari planes.
It was the first sign of easing that Saudi Arabia and its allies, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt, broke with Qatar, which they accuse of supporting extremist groups and having been too Close to Iran’s Shiite, the rival of the Sunni Saudi kingdom.
“The Qatari authorities did not allow the planes to land because they did not have the proper documents, although the documents were filed two days ago,” said Sunday SPA.
Saudi Arabian Airlines General Manager Saleh al-Jasser said the company has so far been unable to schedule flights to transport Qatari pilgrims from Hamad International Airport to Doha because the Qatari authorities have not authorized The landing of the aircraft, “the official news agency continued.
In July, the Doha authorities accused Saudi Arabia of putting obstacles to the participation of Qatari nationals in the great pilgrimage to Mecca, scheduled to begin at the end of the month.
The Saudi authorities refused to allow these pilgrims to arrive directly from Doha on board flights of Qatar Airways, which could no longer fly over Saudi airspace.
If Doha hailed on Thursday the Saudi decision to ease the conditions of entry into Arabia for its citizens wishing to participate in the pilgrimage, he denounced the “politicization” of this religious event by his neighbor.
More than 1.8 million faithful took part in the hajj last year. This ritual is one of the five pillars of Islam that every believer is called upon to perform at least once in his lifetime if he can afford it.
With the press.ca
