Turkey-Saudi Arabia Railway Project: The Return of the Historic Hejaz Railway?

[00:00:00]Turkey and Saudi Arabia are working on a railway project [music] that could reshape transportation across the Middle East.

[00:00:06]The proposed rail line is seen as a major step toward connecting [music] Istanbul with the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.

[00:00:13]The route would pass [music] through Syria and Jordan before reaching Saudi Arabia. However, the roots of this story go [music] back more than 120 years. In the early 1900s, Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid launched the construction of the Hejaz Railway.

[00:00:28]The goal was [music] to connect Damascus with Medina and make the journey easier for Hajj pilgrims.

[00:00:34]By 1908, the railway had reached [music] Medina and was considered one of the most ambitious infrastructure projects in the Muslim world.

[00:00:42]The railway gradually fell into [music] disuse after World War I and the political changes that followed.

[00:00:49]Large sections were damaged or destroyed and the network eventually became fragmented. The long-term vision is to create a rail network stretching from Turkey through Saudi Arabia and potentially [music] further into the Gulf region.

[00:01:02]If completed, the project could become more than just a passenger [music] route.

[00:01:06]It may also serve as a major trade and logistics corridor.

[00:01:10]Experts believe the railway could make freight [music] transport