Saudis Allow Pilgrims From Libya To Land

A Libyan plane ferried 105 Muslim pilgrims to this Red Sea port city, breaking a U.N. ban on air travel.

Saudi authorities allowed the plane to land Friday and the pilgrims to disembark. The kingdom’s policy is to allow all planes with Muslim pilgrims on board to land, an official at King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jiddah said Saturday. The official spoke on condition of customary anonymity.

Similar flights will take place in the next few weeks to transport Libyans for the hajj, or pilgrimage, to Mecca, said a Libyan Embassy official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity. The hajj begins around April 8.

Muslims are required to make the hajj once in a lifetime if they can afford it.