Hajj flights take over 1,700 Pakistani pilgrims to Madinah today

A spokesman for the Ministry of Religious Affairs said eight flights will transport more than 1,700 pilgrims from Pakistan to Medina on Wednesday.

Asylum seekers from the South Asian country are using the Makkah Route initiative this year, which will allow all immigration requirements to be met at the original airport.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Religious Affairs told a local newspaper that a total of 1,710 pilgrims would be transported to Medina on eight Hajj trips, adding that four trips would depart from Islamabad and one each from Karachi, Multan, Lahore and Quetta.

On Monday, the first Hajj flight left the federal capital, with 319 pilgrims on board.  More than 1,300 pilgrims will leave for Mecca on five pilgrimages tomorrow, while the pilgrimage will end on June 30.

According to the state radio report, more than 3,900 pilgrims have left Saudi Arabia so far.

Hajj coordinators have been deployed in both the holy cities and Saudi airports, while hospitals and dispensaries have been set up in the country under the Pakistani Hajj mission.

Saudi Arabia allowed up to one million people to perform the Hajj this year, and invited pilgrims from all over the world for the first time in two years after the spread of code 19.

Pakistan has been allocated a quota of 81,132 pilgrims for Hajj this year, with 32,000 people using the government program and 48,000 travelers via private operators.