(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula
Doha: Traditional Qatari dhow Fath Al Khair began its historic voyage to Europe and North Africa on Wednesday morning with a ceremony held at Babik Port in Istanbul's Bosporus Strait.
For this fourth edition of Fath Al Khair's voyage to foreign shores, the dhow marks its longest voyage which is divided into three phases, the first of which takes it to five countries including Turkey, Greece, Albania, Croatia and Italy.
Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti (centre, front), General Manager of Katara, with Qatari sailors on board Fath Al Khair at Babik Port in Istanbul, Turkey, on Wednesday.
The ceremony was led by Dr. Khalid bin Ibrahim Al Sulaiti, General Manager of Katara and other officials and dignitaries and attended by Qataris, Turkish and visitors from other nationalities.
Dr. Al Sulaiti said he was pleased to have launched the historic Fath Al Khair 4 voyage in Turkey which reflects the close brotherly relations and the remarkable development witnessed in all fields and all fields in light of the growing cooperation between the two countries.
Fath Al Khair 4 will play a prominent role in promoting Qatar as an important sports and cultural destination by introducing football fans in Europe and North Africa the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, he stressed.
He pointed out that the historic journey enhances the cultural communication between the peoples and countries of the world as well as opens the horizons of knowledge and experience.
The dhow's captain Yousef Mohammed Al Sada along with 15 sailors started their journey towards Canakkale Port where they are expected to arrive in 10 days, then they will continue to sail towards Greece's second largest city Thessaloniki.
While expressing happiness with the launch of Fath Al Khair 4, Al Sada looked back on the preparations of the crew which took nine months which he said confirmed the determination of the sailors to embark on the exciting voyage which would take of 4,400 nautical miles and approximately four months. Fath al-Khair 4's maritime route will include the Greek island of Mykonos, Saranda city in the southern part of Albania and its capital Tirana, Croatia's the second largest city of Split-Dalmatia on the eastern shore of Croatia, Italy's Sicily, the largest island in the Mediterranean and conclude at the port of Genoa in northern Italy. The second phase of Fath Al Khair 4 is scheduled to begin in June next year and will include ports in France and Spain while the third and final phase will start in 2021 and include Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.
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