SAUDI ARABIA: Govt grants airspace approval for flights to Israel

Saudi Arabia has granted for the first time permission for Air India flights headed to Israel to use its airspace, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported. The decision, which will be implemented in March, means that the flights from New Delhi to Tel Aviv would be shortened by two and a half hours. The new route, […]

Saudi Arabia has granted for the first time permission for Air India flights headed to Israel to use its airspace, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported.

The decision, which will be implemented in March, means that the flights from New Delhi to Tel Aviv would be shortened by two and a half hours.

The new route, Haaretz said, means that the airline would reduce fuel costs and sell cheaper tickets to passengers.

The Saudi government had banned flights headed to Israel from using its airspace for 70 years. 

The move is seen as a nod to India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s influence in the region, who is expected to land in the occupied West Bank on February 10. 

But the decision also signifies warmer ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia, who have been linked to having increasingly covert relations over the last year.