JEDDAH: Prince Abdul Aziz bin Saud bin Naif, minister of interior and head of the Supreme Hajj Committee, has adopted the general emergency plan for this year’s Hajj season, to be implemented in participation with 33 government agencies.
The director general of Civil Defense, Lt. Gen. Sulaiman Al-Amr, stressed that this pilgrimage season’s plan was expanded upon in light of the results of last year’s pilgrimage season and the recommendations issued by the committee.
He said that the plans are continuously developed as directed by King Salman and the crown prince so as to ensure the security and safety of pilgrims.
He pointed out that the plan included measures to deal with emergency situations, highlighting the tasks and responsibilities of the departments and agencies involved.
Hajj 2019 emergency plan approved
Hajj 2019 emergency plan approved
- The plans are continuously developed as directed by King Salman and the crown prince so as to ensure the security and safety of pilgrims
Saudi Arabia launches initiative to reroute Gulf cargo to Red Sea ports
- The initiative comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted by the widening conflict in the region
- Since the US and Israel struck Iran last month, Tehran has moved to restrict passage through the waterway
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has launched an initiative to redirect shipping from ports in the Arabian Gulf to its Red Sea ports amid the ongoing US-Israel-Iran war.
Transport Minister Saleh Al-Jasser, who also chairs the Saudi Ports Authority (Mawani), launched the Logistics Corridors Initiative alongside Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority Governor Suhail Abanmi, Mawani President Suliman Al-Mazroua, and other officials, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
The initiative will establish dedicated operational corridors to receive containers and cargo redirected from ports in the Kingdom's Eastern Region and other Gulf Cooperation Council states to Jeddah Islamic Port and other Red Sea coast ports.
Al-Jasser said the Kingdom was committed to ensuring supply-chain stability and the smooth flow of goods through global trade routes. Jeddah Islamic Port and other west coast ports, he added, were already playing a key role in accommodating shipments redirected from the east, while also linking Gulf cargo to regional and international markets.
The initiative comes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has been severely disrupted by the widening conflict in the region. Iran has long threatened to close the strait — the world's most critical oil and gas chokepoint, through which roughly a fifth of global oil supplies pass — in the event of a war.
Since the US and Israel struck Iran last month, Tehran has moved to restrict passage through the waterway, sending freight rates soaring and forcing shipping companies to seek alternative routes.
Saudi Arabia's Red Sea ports offer a viable bypass, connecting Gulf cargo to global markets without passing through the strait.
