The Foreign Ministers of Iraq and the Sultanate of Oman announced to the Iranian Foreign Minister the release of the Iranian pilgrim who was detained in Saudi Arabia after he displayed the picture of martyr Qassem Soleimani.

The announcement came during two separate phone calls made by Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein and Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al-Busaidi with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.

In a telephone conversation with his Omani counterpart on Friday evening, the Iranian FM expressed his gratitude for the efforts of the foreign ministers of Iraq and the Sultanate of Oman in following up on the issue of the release of the Iranian pilgrim detained in Saudi Arabia, expressing his hope that he will return to Iran soon.

The Iranian Fars news agency reported that the Saudi security forces arrested the Iranian pilgrim Khalil Dardmand when he tried to take a picture of his phone displaying the photo of the commander of the Quds Force, martyr Qassem Soleimani, near the Kaaba.

The agency added that a judicial file was formed regarding the Iranian detainee, noting that "the absence of an Iranian ambassador in Saudi Arabia, and the absence of diplomatic relations with this country, impede the follow-up to the release of Iranian prisoners in Saudi Arabia."

Given the severance of diplomatic relations between Tehran and Riyadh, Iran's diplomatic and judicial efforts to release Dardmand continued through mediating countries.