Dubai: A Saudi actress has offered to rent four planes to carry Qatari nationals to Jeddah or Medina in order to perform Haj.
“I swear to God that I am ready to provide the expenses to rent four Boeing 777 planes to transport all Qatar pilgrims,” Reem Abdullah said. “This is a challenge from me to the Qatari regime that has prevented Qataris from performing Haj,” she posted on her Twitter account.
The Boeing 777, the world's largest twinjet, has a typical seating capacity of 314 to 396 passengers.
Saudi news site Al Marsad estimated the cost for renting the four aircrafts would be around 2.3 million Saudi Riyals.
Reem, 30, has played starring roles in more than 20 Gulf dramas since 2007 and in one movie, Wadjda, in 2012.
A row has emerged between Saudi Arabia and Qatar over the presence of Qataris at the annual Haj gathering in Makkah.
Riyadh severed its diplomatic relations with Doha on June 5 and barred all Qataris from entering Saudi Arabia and Saudis from going to Qatar.
The measures were to protest Qatar’s support for extremist ideologies and terrorism and interference in the internal affairs of Arab countries.
However, Saudi Arabia said the ban did not extend to pilgrimage (Haj) and Umrah.
On July 20, the Saudi Ministry of Haj and Umrah said the kingdom welcomed people from Qatar who wished to perform Haj and Umrah.
However, it added that for Umrah, Qataris could fly to Saudi Arabia on any carrier except Qatar Airways.
Qataris and expatriates with Qatari residency visas who have Haj permits from the Saudi ministry and from relevant bodies in Qatar can enter the Kingdom via air carriers chosen by Doha and approved by Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA), the ministry said in a statement.
They can enter through King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah and Prince Mohammad Bin Abdul Aziz Airport in Medina. GACA later confirmed the arrangements.
Qatar said that they were not pleased with the arrangements and last week filed a complaint to the UN over the "obstacles" put in place for Qataris planning to perform the pilgrimage.
Saudi Arabia on Sunday said it refused the move by Qatar.
“Saudi Arabia rejects Qatar’s attempt to politicise the arrival of Qatari pilgrims into the kingdom,” Saudi Foreign Minister Adel Al Jubeir said during a press conference in the Bahraini capital Manama. “The kingdom has been exerting great efforts to ease the arrival of all pilgrims. The brothers in Qatar are most welcome, like any other Muslim from anywhere in the world, to visit the holy sites.”
