Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) plans to work closely with Middle Eastern airline companies in a bid to attract more visitors from the region to Malaysia.

MAHB Senior General Manager Zainol Mohd Isa said many Muslim tourists were facing many restrictions in visiting certain countries such as North America and several European countries, as such, MAHB aimed to attract them to visit Malaysia.

He said most Middle Eastern residents would begin travelling out of their countries from May onwards, especially during summer.

"They (the Middle Eastern airlines) have their own strategies to attract passengers, and we hope that the number of passengers from those regions to Malaysia would continue to increase," Zainol told reporters after witnessing the arrival of Uzbekistan Airway's new aircraft at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport here Friday.

Kuala Lumpur is the first Asian destination for the airline's Dreamliner 787-8, which would service the Tashkent-Kuala Lumpur sector twice a week. -- Bernama