Cairo: A convoy of 25 Pakistani motorcyclists have set off on a six-country trip that includes the UAE and Saudi Arabia, media reports said.
During their 60-day journey, the bikers will also stop in Iran, Kuwait, Jordan and Iraq en route to Saudi Arabia where they will perform Umrah or lesser pilgrimage.
A large number of well-wishers saw off the group at Tourism Development Corporation of Punjab (TDCP) office after Friday prayers, the Pakistani newspaper The News reported.
The bikers representing the Cross Route Club are travelling more than 14,000 kilometres during the trip aimed to promote peace, friendship and fraternity, the report said.
They will visit major tourist attractions, both cultural and religious places in the six countries.
The bikers will cover the distance to reach the Saudi holy city of Makkah, Pakistani news outlet Samaa reported.
According to the TDCP, the motorcycle-riding youth will reach Saudi Arabia in 60 days passing through Iran, the UAE, Kuwait, Jordan and Iraq.
In Saudi Arabia, they will visit religious and ancient sites, Saudi news portal Sabq quoted them as saying.
In recent months, relations have thrived between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
Last April, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif made his first foreign visit to Saudi Arabia after taking office.
Last month, Saudi Arabia extended the term of a $3 billion deposit it made to Pakistan’s foreign reserves.
The money was deposited in Pakistan’s central bank in 2021 as a loan to shore up the country’s foreign reserves.
The extension of the deposit came in continuation of the Saudi government’s support to Pakistan’s foreign reserves to confront economic fallout from Covid-19, the Saudi official news agency said at the time.
