The Israeli Ministry of Interior has permitted, for the first time ever, limited travel of Israeli citizens to Saudi Arabia, although the decision remains moot as Riyadh continues to ban Israelis from the kingdom.
The Times of Israel said in its report last week that Interior Minister Aryeh Deri signed an order facilitating the travel of Israelis to Saudi Arabia for business or religious reasons, provided that they obtain an invitation from a Saudi entity. The decision would make Hajj and Umrah travel much easier for Israeli Muslims, who are currently forced to obtain temporary Jordanian travel documents to perform the pilgrimage.
However, shortly after the decision was announced, Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan told CNN that Riyadh had not changed its stance and continues to ban the arrival of Israeli citizens in the country.
"Our policy is constant. We don't have relations with Israel and holders of Israeli passports cannot visit the kingdom for now... When a peace treaty between the Palestinians and Israel is reached, the question of Israel’s integration in the region will be on the table I believe," he said.
However, the recently announced US-sponsored peace plan has already been rejected by the Palestinian Authority for legitimising Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Besides the ban on direct travel, the lack of official diplomatic relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia is a particular headache to El Al Israel Airlines (LY, Tel Aviv Ben Gurion). The carrier cannot overfly Saudi Arabia, as well as several other Arab states, and has to operate its services to Mumbai International, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, Phuket, and Hong Kong International (as well as forthcoming flights to Melbourne Tullamarine) via significant flightpath detours.
