The Kingdom's aviation authorities on Thursday prevented an Iranian plane carrying 260 Umrah pilgrims from entering the country's airspace because the aircraft lacked appropriate permissions. The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) announced the move in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency. The pilgrims had hoped to arrive in the Kingdom on Wednesday afternoon to perform the minor pilgrimage.
In a statement, GACA said the plane did not have proper permission from it allowing it to fly to the Kingdom. The permission is according to accepted international regulations, it said. — SG