New Delhi: India is seeing an increase in travelers heading to Saudi Arabia, according to a top Indian tourism body, which also said there is growing interest in the Kingdom’s heritage, especially among Gen Z Indians.

Tourism is booming in Saudi Arabia under the Vision 2030 transformation plan. In the past few years there has been significant investment in the development of destinations including its eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites, eco-friendly and luxury resorts on the Red Sea coastline, and entertainment and sports complexes.

The promotion for these developments has also included Bollywood stars, and more and more Indians are looking to visit Riyadh, Jeddah and AlUla, rather than Dubai — traditionally the most popular destination in the GCC for Indian travelers.

“Earlier it was only Dubai ... but now that trend is changing,” Himanshu Kesari Patil, president of the Outbound Tour Operators Association of India, an organization representing over 800 travel companies and agents, told Arab News. “There are lots of inquiries for Saudi Arabia, a lot of people are going. The top-selling destination for Saudi Arabia is AlUla,”

AlUla, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, is often described as an “open-air museum.” One of its most famous areas is Hegra, a UNESCO World Heritage site that features tombs and monuments from the Nabatean civilization dating back to the 1st century BCE.

Another is Elephant Rock, a natural rock formation in the AlUla desert, which has become one of the region’s most photographed natural landmarks.

Many notable Bollywood celebrities, including Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh, and Priyanka Chopra, have visited AlUla, while others, such as up-and-comers Janhvi Kapoor and Ali Fazal, have partnered with the local authorities to promote it, increasing the site’s appeal among Gen Z travelers, which data portal Statista refers to as the “most travel-hungry” generation.

“Gen Z, they are more tech-savvy, they are always on social media and they want to explore unexplored places. (They) are not going to the routine places where everyone else is going, they want to do something different,” Patil said.

India’s outbound tourism market is growing, and the Pacific Asia Travel Association estimates that the number of Indians traveling abroad annually will reach 45 million in the next five years.

By then, the Kingdom expects to welcome 7.5 million Indian travelers a year, according to the Saudi Tourism Authority.

“Saudi Arabia is investing a lot of money in the Indian market and I’m sure, soon, Saudi Arabia will get more numbers out of India,” Patil said.

“They are friendly, have great multicultural cuisine … for the tourists it’s amazing,” he continued. “I think, soon, with the new developments and new cities they are building, the new luxury hotels they are building, there is a bright future for Saudi Arabia on the tourism side.”
 

SEOUL: Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol attended court for the first time on Saturday to fight a request by investigators to extend his detention as they probe his failed martial law bid.

Thousands of Yoon’s supporters rallied outside the court and scuffled with police as they chanted support for the suspended leader, who plunged South Korea into its worst political chaos in decades with his bid to suspend civilian rule.

The president’s December 3 martial law declaration lasted just six hours, with lawmakers voting it down despite him ordering soldiers to storm parliament to stop them. He was impeached soon after.

Yoon was detained in a dawn raid on Wednesday in a criminal probe on insurrection charges after he refused investigators’ summons and went to ground in his residence, using his presidential security detail to resist arrest.

South Korea’s first sitting president to be detained, Yoon also declined to cooperate during the initial 48 hours detectives were allowed to hold him.

However, the disgraced president remains in custody after investigators requested a new warrant on Friday to extend his detention.

Yoon “explained and answered faithfully regarding the facts, evidence, and legal issues,” his lawyer Yoon Kab-keun told reporters after the hearing.

His lawyer earlier said the leader had hopes of “restoring his honor” before the judges.

The court must decide whether to free Yoon, which analysts say is unlikely, or extend his detention for around another 20 days. Its ruling is expected late on Saturday or early Sunday.

Crowds of Yoon’s backers gathered outside the court, waving flags and holding “release the president” placards. Yonhap said police estimated that around 12,000 supporters had rushed to the area.

Sixteen protesters were arrested by police after attempting to force their way into the courthouse, AFP reporters at the scene saw.

The hearing concluded after about five hours at around 6:50 p.m. local time (0950 GMT), a court official said.

Yoon left the court in a blue Justice Ministry van with his guards jogging alongside, AFP reporters saw, heading back to the Seoul Detention Center where he is being held.

Thousands of supporters cheered and shouted as the vehicle left in a convoy with presidential security.

Yoon sent a letter through his lawyers on Friday thanking his supporters, who include evangelical Christians and right-wing YouTubers, for protests that he deemed “passionate patriotism.”

During the hearing some protesters outside chanted “Cha Eun-gyeong is a commie!,” referring to the judge reviewing the arrest request. Others cried “We love you, President Yoon Suk Yeol” and “Impeachment is invalid!”

They marched while waving South Korean and American flags and took over the main roads in front of the court. Yoon’s party typically favors South Korea’s US security alliance and rejects engagement with the nuclear-armed North.

“The likelihood of the court approving the arrest is very high and, aware of this, Yoon has urged maximum mobilization among his hardline supporters,” Chae Jin-won of Humanitas College at Kyung Hee University said.

“Today’s protests serve as a sort of farewell event between Yoon and his extreme support base.”

The crisis has seemingly boosted support for the conservative People Power Party (PPP), for whom Yoon won the presidential election in 2022.

A Gallup survey published on Friday showed the PPP’s approval rose to 39 percent, three points higher than the opposition Democratic Party.

A decision by the court to approve Yoon’s continued detention would give prosecutors time to formalize an indictment for insurrection, a charge for which he could be jailed for life or executed if found guilty.

Such an indictment would also mean Yoon would likely be detained for a maximum six months during the trial.

Once “the warrant is issued this time, (Yoon) will likely be unable to return home for an extended period,” political commentator Park Sang-byung said.

Yoon said on Wednesday he had agreed to leave his compound to avoid “bloodshed” but that he did not accept the legality of the investigation.

He has refused to answer investigators’ questions, his legal team saying Yoon explained his position on the day he was arrested.

Yoon has also been absent from a parallel probe at the Constitutional Court, which is considering whether to uphold his impeachment.

If that court rules against him, Yoon will formally lose the presidency and elections will be called within 60 days.

He did not attend the first two hearings this week but the trial, which could last months, will continue in his absence.