DAMASCUS, May 24, 2023 (BSS/XINHUA) - Syrians' Hajj pilgrimage to the Islamic holy cities of Madinah and Makkah in Saudi Arabia will be resumed in 2024 after 12 years of suspension, Syria's head of Hajj affairs said Wednesday.

There will be no Hajj pilgrimage for Syrians this year as the relations between Syria and Saudi Arabia have just been restored and the Hajj arrangements need time and coordination, the pro-government al-Watan newspaper quoted Hassan Nasrallah as saying.

In the years when the Syrian-Saudi relations were severed, Syrian pilgrims who wanted to perform Hajj needed to obtain visas from neighboring countries.

Syria and Saudi Arabia agreed to resume consular services in April and restored full diplomatic relations this month.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attended the Arab Summit held in Saudi Arabia last week for the first time in 12 years, marking the return of Syria to the Arab fold after long years of isolation.