Kuwait Airways denied what was being circulated on social media that the Kuwaiti carrier has received instructions from Riyadh’s government to prevent Qataris from performing Umrah in Makkah.
In a press statement the Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), quoted the company’s chairman Yousuf Al-Jassim denying that it received a directive to ban Qatari citizens from boarding its flights.
“Kuwait Air received instructions to allow Qatari nationals to travel on company flights to perform Umrah without prior permission".
Jassim pointed out that the Saudi authorities have identified both King Abdul Aziz Airport in Jeddah and Prince Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz Airport in Madinah as main arrival airports for Qatari nationals hoping to perform Umrah.
The Kuwaiti air carrier’s testimony comes at the height of a wide-ranging Qatar-led propagandist campaign to blame the Saudi authorities for allegedly impeding the performance of Umrah by Qatari pilgrims.
Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Pakistan issued a statement last Friday discrediting news reported by some Pakistani media.
The reporting contained “false information and claims about the rights of Qatari citizens to perform Umrah rituals,” the statement said.
It also stressed the Kingdom’s knees to provide care to Qatari brothers and facilitate their performance of Hajj and Umrah rituals with ease.
The ‘Umrah’ is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, performed by Muslims and that can be undertaken at any time of the year, in contrast to the Ḥajj pilgrimage which has specific dates according to the Islamic lunar calendar.
