JEDDAH – Makkah Emir Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, who is also adviser to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, reaffirmed the Saudi government’s commitment to protect the environment in the holy places in its efforts to serve the guests of Allah, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported Sunday.

During a reception accorded to French Senator Nathalie Goulet, who is a member of the Gulf-French Friendship Committee, at his office in Jeddah, Prince Khaled said: “The King of this country chose the title “Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques” for himself and the Saudi government has placed all its financial and human capabilities at the service of the two holy mosques, the visitors to these places and providing them with the best of services."

During his meeting, Prince Khaled discussed with the French dignitary aspects of cooperation in protecting the environment, especially the “Haj Without Plastics” initiative. He said Saudi Arabia had been paying a lot of attention to the environmental aspects during the Haj and Umrah seasons.

In this regard, he mentioned the partial implementation of the “Haj Without Plastics” initiative during the last Haj season in a number of pilgrim camps, apart from carrying out many environment-friendly projects, including the safe disposal of garbage in the holy sites in a scientific manner.

The French Senate member expressed thanks to the Makkah governorate and those in charge of the “Haj Without Plastics” initiative for the environment-friendly programs they are carrying out. She expressed her readiness to cooperate in developing such initiatives, especially in their technical aspects. — SG/SPA