Manama: At least 53,000 people drove into Bahrain over the weekend in a strong indication that the security situation has vastly improved, an official said.
"The total number of people who came into Bahrain over the two-day weekend was 67,288," the head of Bahrain's entry points directorate said. "The number of passengers who used the King Fahad Causeway was 52,935 while the figure for those who flew in through the airport was 14,353," the official said.
The 24-kilometre long causeway was opened in November 1986 and was named after the then king of Saudi Arabia, Fahad Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud.
Millions of vehicles have been using it, but it was partly shut down in March over security concerns sparked by weeks of unrest that hit Bahrain.
According to Bader Al Otaishan, the head of the King Fahd Causeway Authority, around 17 million people crossed the causeway from both directions last year, a 1.3 million increase over 2009.
The causeway has had a strong economic and social impact on Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
In Riyadh, the head of Bahrain media authority, Shaikh Fawaz Bin Mohammad Al Khalifa, said that Manama looked forward to robust media cooperation with Riyadh "to defend Gulf and Arab issues" and "to confront blatant antagonism towards Gulf countries."