Hundreds gathered Thursday for the first concert in the Saudi capital since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic to watch performances by Syrian diva Assala Nasri and Kuwaiti crooner Nabeel Shuail.
"This is the first concert to take place in Saudi for a very long time," said one spectator at the concert, held in a restaurant of a large Riyadh hotel.
"We are delighted to come from Kuwait to attend the concert," said a Kuwaiti tourist.
Saudi Arabia has recorded more than 454,000 coronavirus infections, including 7,408 deaths.
It was not the first concert -- Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli sang in April at the ancient Saudi city of Hegra, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Saudi Arabia has hosted international musicians -- from Janet Jackson to 50 Cent and K-pop mega-group BTS -- for concerts as part of its drive to boost its tourism sector.
The pandemic put a brake on the country's ambitious push to draw tourists, but it is slowly reopening.
