The most extensive relations between an Iranian famil and the House of Saud was rendered by the Hashemis. Although these days, due to the policies of the Saudi government in Middle East, the reduction of oil prices to damage Iran, and the Mina catastrophe, no report is seen in the media about recent visits between the two families, behind the curtains there is the relation that still continues.
The relations between the Hashemis and the House of Sauid, although it lacked any gain nfor Iran, but it has been full of prophit for the Hashemis. In the book memorie of two decades of overseeing the hajj, Mohammadi Reyshahri, which has been published by the Islamic Republic Documents Center, he points to efforts by the Saudi rulers to allocate one third of the Umrah flights to Yasser Hashemi who was 29 years old at that time.
The beginning of relations: Effat or Akbar
As for the one who started Iran - Saudi Arabia relations there are two viewpoints. But both have come out from the same family. Effat Marashi, wife to Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, believes that she was the one who revied relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia. She says 'After the massacre of Iranian hajj in the year 1366 I travelled to Saudi Arabia. In that trip, the wife of Malik Abdullah threw a party and invited to one meal and she held a meeting. They wanted me to accept the invitation, which I did. As I did, relations started."
But Rafsanjani himself has another story to tell, which dates back to years before his wife travelled to Saudi Arabia. Hashemi believes Iran - Saudi Arabia relations started so: In the beginning of his presidency, Hashemi traveled to Senegal to attend the Islamic Conference summit. His first meeting with Abdullah is held there. "Mr. Amir Abdullah was also there representing Saudi Arabia. I was president and he was crown prince. It was natural that if there was to be a meeting, he should come to me. Our country was bigger. I was a president and he was a crown prince. When there was the talk of a meeting, he had said that I should go. I said there was no problem. It is okay since we are two Muslim counties. This gave them the initial spart to think that we were not stuck-up as they would believe.'
Second meeting with emir Abdullah
The second meeting between Hashemi and emir Abdullah dates back to the last years of his presidency. Hashemi sets for Pakistan with a delegation to attend the Islamic Conference summit. during that trip he meets emir Abdullah and it is settled that with the previous meeting in mind, this time Abdullah goes to Hashemi. 'In the Pakistan summit it was settled for him to come to our room. because each of us had a room. In Senegal it was I who went and now it was him that should have come. I was sitting in a meeting when they came and said the emir was waiting for me. Mr. Velayati said the arrangement was that he should come, now what shoould we do? I said we should go and not be arrogant. The important thing is the talk. We went. All of a sudden we saw emir Abdullah come out of his room with some others to greet us. They said we are ready to go to your room. There things chagned, that is, the very modesty that we exhibited took them there."
The beginning of family relations
According to Hashemi's story, after the bilatteral meeting in Senegal, two sided relations grew stronger and family relations formed. "This created a sort of psychological and political relation between me and him, which we boosted in family visits."
It was after this that besides the visits, family negotiations also started. Hashemi says "As we moved along, our relations grew in the family dimention as well. When we would go there, it was usually our family and theirs as well. They would throw parties and things got a little ahead of diplomatic affairs and became family oriented. He who had come to Tehran for the Islamic Conference summit visited our home despite diplomatic norms and based on his own insistance." During that trip, despite the Hashemi family inviting emir Abdullah's wife, Abdullah did not bring his wife, although Arabs are accustomed to bringing their wifes with them.
Mr. Hashemi's son meets emir Abdullah
According to Reyshahri, in the summer of the Iranian year 1373, emir Abdullah tips off Mehdi Hashemi for a visit while in Libya. There, Mehdi meets Abdullah for the first time along with Iranian ambassador Mousavian. In that meeting, they arrange for a next meeting in SAudi Arabia, which takes place a week later. In the second meeting as well, Mousavian is present. There, Abdullah lays conditions for holding the hajj, none of which Iran accepts.
The next meeting between Hashemi's son and emir Abdullah takes place on request from the Saudi side during Hashemi's trip to Saudi Arabia that was meant for the Umrah hajj. This time as well Mehdi and Mousavian meet Abdullah, in which they talk about bilaterral relations based on suggestion by Hashemi, the president.
Elsewhere in his book, Reyshahri says that in 1379, Saudi officials, following plans by some Saudi rulers to gain profit, insist on privatizing the Umrah by Iran. They announce to their affiliated organizations that they should only deal with private companies that are business party with the Saudi hajj ministry. Following that, the Iranian hajj and pilgrimage organization launche stwo private copanies named Mehre Jan and Asre Parvaz. All private agencies gathered to form Mehre Jan while Asre Parvaz was consisted of the IRGC cooperative, the economic department of the Abdolazim shrine, and a Saudi partner.
After these changes, Saudi officials decided to give the privilege of one third of Umrah flights to Yasser Hashemi. At that time it was said that the profit gained from doing so was to be spent to treat patients with thalassemia. In the month of Bahman that year, due to the significance of the issue, in a private meeting between Reyshahri and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader asks about the allocation of one third fo the flights to Hashemi's son and the details of how the profit is given to patients with thalassemia. But for the fact that the then head of the hajj and pilgrimage organization is ignorant of the issue, the Leader does not recieve a clear answer.
