Saudi Arabia: Medina-bound Hajj flights end Thursday

Cairo: Flights carrying pilgrims to the Saudi city of Medina for next week’s annual Hajj rites are due to end Thursday, concluding more than a month of successive arrivals of the faithful in the holy city.

Pilgrims from around the world started to arrive in Medina, home to Islam’s second holiest site, on the first day of Dhul Qadah, the 11th month on the Islamic lunar calendar.

A total of 813,658 pilgrims from different nationalities arrived until Wednesday in Medina for this year’s Hajj, the Saudi news agency SPA reported, citing official figures.

The figure included 16,785 arrivals on Wednesday, of them 13,940 pilgrims landed at the Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz in Medina aboard 76 flights.

Around 680,616 pilgrims have departed Medina for the holy city of Mecca, home to Islam’s holiest site, in preparation for Hajj rites, according to the figures.

Authorities in Medina have maximised preparedness to handle pilgrims’ departure to Mecca on Friday, the fifth of the Dhul Hajjah month when the number of departures from the city usually peaks ahead of the Hajj start.

Medina is famed for the Prophet’s Mosque, which houses Al Rawda Al Sharifa where the tomb of the Prophet Mohammed (Peace Be Upon Him) is located.

After performing Hajj rites in Mecca and nearby sites, many pilgrims would head to Medina to pray at the Prophet’s Mosque.

Saudi Arabia has said there will be no limits on the numbers of pilgrims from around the world for this Hajj, reversing earlier restrictions prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pilgrims from specific countries have got access to facilities offered through a Saudi initiative finalising Hajj-related procedures in their home countries.

The initiative, dubbed “Mecca Route”, kicked off on a trial basis in 2017.

It is applied this year to pilgrims from seven countries, namely, Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Morocco, Bangladesh, Turkiye and Cote d’Ivoire.