After 9 years, Iranians are getting a chance to perform Umrah

Last Updated on April 23, 2024 2:18 am

A group of Iranians have gone to Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah for the first time in nine long years.

The 85-member Umrah group arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday (April 22). This journey is basically a part of efforts to improve relations between these two powers of the Middle East.

Iranian media reported that Saudi Arabia lifted the ban on Iranian pilgrims in December last year. But still Iranians could not perform Umrah in Saudi Arabia. Tehran said, due to technical problems, it was not possible to launch flights with Saudi Arabia for so long.

The Saudi embassy in Tehran was attacked eight years ago after the beheading of Saudi Arabia’s Shia cleric Nimr Baqir al-Nimr. After that, Saudi Arabia severed relations with Iran. Since then there was tension between the two countries. Later, in March 2023, diplomatic relations between the two countries were resumed with the mediation of China.

Before relations were normalized, Iranians could only perform Hajj. But he could not perform Umrah. Abdullah bin Saud Al-Anji, the Saudi ambassador to Iran, sent off 85 Umrah pilgrims from Tehran’s main airport, Khomeini International Airport, on Monday morning.