Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and the new Saudi ambassador, Fahd al-Dossari, at the port of Beirut on June 22, 2026, to accompany the departure of the first ship carrying Lebanese goods to Riyadh since the lifting of the embargo. (Credit: L'Orient-Le Jour)
BEIRUT — Middle East Airlines announced in a statement that it was resuming air cargo services from Lebanon to Saudi Arabia, two days after a ceremony was held at the Port of Beirut in the presence of Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and the new Saudi ambassador, Fahd al-Dossari, to mark the first cargo filled with Lebanese goods to the kingdom since the Saudi authorities decided to lift the embargo that had been in place since 2021.
MEA specified that "the approval of the relevant Saudi authorities to receive air cargo from Lebanon" also covers exports of Lebanese goods as well as the "re-export" of products from elsewhere to Saudi Arabia, passing through Lebanon.
"This measure is part of efforts to strengthen economic and trade relations between the two countries, as well as to meet the needs of Lebanese exporters, with the Saudi market being one of the main outlets for their products," the airline added. MEA is currently the only national airline operating at Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport — the country's only airport for now — under an agreement signed in 1969 that has recently expired.
MEA clarified that its air freight division (MEA Cargo) "has already begun taking all necessary operational measures to receive and transport shipments to the various Saudi airports served by the company, in order to ensure smooth operations and quick processing of deliveries,” and invited exporters to contact them for inquiries about freight procedures and reservations.
