Saudi king orders Qatar border reopened to Hajj pilgrims

Saudi Arabia's King Salman has ordered the border with Qatar be reopened to allow pilgrims to take part in the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, official state media said in Riyadh.

The decision came after the kingdom received an envoy from Doha for the first time since Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates severed ties with Qatar on 5 June.

The king ordered that Qatari pilgrims be allowed "to enter Saudi Arabia through the border crossing to do the pilgrimage," said a statement from the Saudi News Agency (SPA).

He also ordered that private jets belonging to Saudi airlines be sent to Doha's airport "to bring all Qatari pilgrims at his expense," it added.

SPA also said the Salwa border point would be open for Qatari citizens who wish to perform the annual pilgrimage to pass through with no electronic permissions needed.

Riyadh and its allies had boycotted Qatar, accusing it of supporting terrorism, charges that Doha denies.

Qatar accused the Saudis of politicising Hajj during a meeting of the United Nations special rapporteur on freedom of religion last month. 

The Doha-backed National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) told the UN that Qatari citizens were being told that they could only enter Saudi Arabia through two airports and that they would have to travel via the Qatari capital of Doha to be allowed in.

The NHRC said in a statement that it was "extremely concerned over [Saudi Arabia] politicising religious rituals and using [Hajj] to achieve political gains".

"The Saudi authorities have allowed the Qatari pilgrims to enter Saudi Arabia through two airports via Qatar only, thus any Qatari citizen located outside Qatar must first return to Qatar then travel to Saudi Arabia," it said.