Saudia flights to resume after 5 years

Saudi Arabia’s national airline is resuming flights to Canada after a five-year diplomatic spat.

Saudia, formerly known as Saudi Arabian Airlines, will fly three times a week between Jeddah and Pearson International Airport starting Dec. 2. Transport Canada said it’s the first time there have been direct routes between the two countries since 2018, when Saudi Arabia suspended flights as it protested the Canada’s loud condemnation of its human-rights record.

That year, Global Affairs Canada called on the country to “immediately release” detained women’s rights and democracy activists.

In response, Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador from Ottawa and expelled Canada’s envoy, while also moving to reduce the number of its citizens studying in Canada.

The two countries agreed in May to welcome new ambassadors to each other’s capitals.

The spat occurred just months before the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi at a Saudi consulate in Turkey.