Gulf Air has launched flights to the Iraqi city of Najaf during a ceremony at Bahrain International Airport.

The flights will operate on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

The new service to the holy city comes only weeks after Gulf Air resumed commercial operations to Baghdad for the first time since 1991.

A delegation of senior Gulf Air officials, government, business, religious, diplomats and media boarded the inaugural flight to Najaf for a whistle-stop visit.

They included Bahrain's Ambassador to Iraq Salah Al Malki, Iraq's Ambassador to Bahrain Ghassan Hussain and Civil Aviation Affairs Under-Secretary Captain Abdulrahman Mohammed Al Gaoud.

Gulf Air chief executive officer Samer Majali said the airline hoped Najaf would soon become a centre of religious and cultural tourism.

It plans to expand the four times weekly service to daily flights from October 26, once two of the 15 new A320 aircraft it has ordered arrive.-TradeArabia News Service