Israel to allow some citizens to visit Saudi Arabia in major policy shift
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Travels would now be permitted for Muslim citizens of Israel to travel to the Saudi holy city of Mecca for pilgrimage.
PHOTO: REUTERS
DeeperDive is a beta AI feature. Refer to full articles for the facts.
JERUSALEM (XINHUA) - Israel's government announced on Sunday (Jan 26) that it would allow some Israeli citizens to fly to Saudi Arabia in a major policy shift.
Israel's Interior Minister Aryeh Deri signed for the first time in Israel's history a permit for an Israeli citizen to travel to Saudi Arabia, with which Israel has no official diplomatic ties, said a statement issued by the Interior Ministry.
The ministry said it was cancelling its prior policy, which completely banned visits to Saudi Arabia.
Travels would now be permitted for Muslim citizens of Israel to travel to the Saudi holy city of Mecca for pilgrimage.
The interior ministry would also allow visits to Saudi Arabia for up to 90 days to attend business meetings or search for investment, if the Israeli traveler has an invitation from a Saudi official to enter the kingdom.
The move is the latest sign of warming ties between Israel and the Gulf state.
The Muslim population in Israel was some 1.53 million, according to officials figures by Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics. Its total population is around 8.6 million, with Muslims comprising some 17 per cent.
