RIYADH: Saudi travel companies have flown to the defense of airlines over claims they have been trying to cash in on expats looking to return to work in the Kingdom.
Following Saudi Arabia’s move to allow the partial resumption of international flights, plane operators have been running limited-capacity services for expats with Ministry of Interior approval to fly home.
But there have been complaints from passengers about the high prices being charged for one-way flight tickets.
Mohammed Aslam Jameel, supervisor at a travel agency in Riyadh, told Arab News: “Ticket prices are not as expensive as people are assuming. They could consider it as similar to booking tickets during high season.”
He said that one-way airfares were generally always more expensive than round-trip tickets. “In fact, one must appreciate that the aviation industry and travel companies have kept fares at a reasonable range, considering the six-month lull over aviation business.”
Despite holiday bookings being down, Saudi travel firms are hopeful of an uptick in business if regular flights get back to near normal in January.
“Currently, with Saudis not allowed to travel outside the Kingdom, apart from in exceptional cases with government approval, we cannot expect any boom in holiday business until the middle of next year,” Jameel said.
Feroz Khan, vice president of sales in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain for WebBeds, the world’s second largest accommodation supplier to the travel industry, told Arab News: “With flight suspension removed partially by the Kingdom, Indians are looking forward to seeing airlines operating inbound flights to Saudi Arabia from India.
“With people stranded, limited flight availability, and small-bodied aircraft, demand is expected to be very high, fueling airfares to some extent.
“However, practically speaking and as per prices circulating on social media, I see it is still reasonable though on the higher side, considering the nature of the operations,” he said.
Airlines were charging the equivalent of a high-season round-trip airfare for a one-way ticket, Khan said, with, for example, a Delhi to Riyadh flight averaging SR2,000 ($533).
International flights to and from the Kingdom were suspended on March 15 as part of preventive measures to contain the spread of COVID-19.
Where the health situation has improved, countries are beginning to relax certain travel restrictions.
Saudi travel firms reject claims of airlines cashing in on returning expatriates
https://arab.news/5npb5
Saudi travel firms reject claims of airlines cashing in on returning expatriates
- International flights to and from the Kingdom were suspended on March 15 as part of preventive measures to contain the spread of COVID-19
KSrelief transfers Gaza girl to Jordan for cancer treatment
- Roza Al-Dreimli in Jordan because Israel destroyed Gaza hospitals
- Under assessment, monitoring at the King Hussein Cancer Center
AMMAN: A cancer-stricken Palestinian girl from Gaza is now undergoing clinical observation prior to treatment at a specialist hospital in Jordan, thanks to Saudi Arabia’s aid agency KSrelief.
Roza Al-Dreimli was transported to Amman from the Gaza Strip through the initiative of KSrelief, as a part of Saudi Arabia’s continued medical support for Palestinians, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Friday.
Al-Dreimli was prioritized because assessments indicated the need for advanced treatment of cancerous cells at the base of her brain. She is at the King Hussein Cancer Center, and being treated by a team of pediatricians.
She is currently undergoing “intensive clinical monitoring” to “ensure control of the condition, and prevent any potential neurological or visual complications resulting from the tumor’s location,” the SPA reported.
Al-Dreimli’s family expressed profound gratitude for KSrelief’s swift intervention, and hoped the specialized care would ensure a full recovery.
Such specialized care is currently unavailable in the Gaza Strip because of Israel’s alleged genocidal destruction of hospitals and killing of medical workers since Oct. 7, 2023.
Israel has systematically destroyed homes and commercial buildings and infrastructure in the Palestinian enclave, killing over 70,000 Palestinians, many of them unarmed men, women and children, and injuring more than 170,000.
Tel Aviv has stated that its actions were in retaliation to a raid by Hamas of Israeli border villages, during which the militant group reportedly killed more than 1,200 people and took 254 hostages.
