Tobias (Toby) Siegal is editor and contributor to The Times of Israel.
Israel has called on Saudi Arabia to allow direct flights from Tel Aviv to the Muslim kingdom ahead of this year’s pilgrimage to Mecca, which is expected to be the largest Islamic pilgrimage since the coronavirus pandemic rocked the annual event, a key pillar of Islam.
Regional Cooperation Minister Esawi Frej said Thursday that he had submitted a formal request to the Saudi government on the matter.
“I would like to see the day when I can leave Ben Gurion Airport to fulfill my legal [religious] responsibility as a Muslim in Mecca,” said Frej, an Israeli Arab lawmaker from the left-wing Meretz party.
“I have raised the factor with Saudi Arabia and I hope that day will come soon,” he said in an interview with Army Radio.
Currently, Saudi Arabia accepts Muslim pilgrims arriving from Israel to Mecca, but forces them to cross a third country, which, according to Frej, can charge up to $11,500 for a week-long trip.
Meanwhile, pilgrims from neighboring Arab countries pay about a portion of this amount.
A million pilgrims from around the world gathered in Mecca, believed to be the birthplace of the Prophet Muhammad, on Thursday to perform the first hajj rites.
The hajj is a duty for all Muslims physically and financially capable of making the journey, which takes the faithful on a path traveled by the Prophet Muhammad some 1,400 years ago.
After normalizing Israeli relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in 2020, Saudi Arabia allowed Israeli flights to those Gulf states to fly over its territory in a special air corridor.
Israel hopes to make this approval bigger so that it also applies to destinations.
In addition to Frej’s request, Hebrew-language media said Thursday that unnamed Israeli officials also asked the kingdom to approve Flights by Israeli airlines on its territory, which in particular would refer to the time and cost of flights between Israel and Asia.
This is ahead of US President Joe Biden’s plan for the region next week.
Biden is expected to land in Israel on July 13 for a two-day visit, before departing for Saudi Arabia. He recently said that one of the goals of his vacation would be to “deepen Israel’s integration into the region,” raising hypotheses about the imaginable normalization of relations with the Gulf state.
Last month, reports indicated Israel’s goal of asking Biden to approve the delivery of a laser-powered Israeli air defense formula to Arab countries aligned in opposition to Iran, Saudi Arabia.
Defense Secretary Benny Gantz spoke of an imaginable “breakthrough” during Biden’s upcoming visit.
But analysts said diplomatic relations with Israel will not be imaginable as long as King Salman, 86, remains in power.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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