ISLAMABAD, May 10 (APP): Pakistan’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Ahmed Farooq, on Friday urged Pakistani Hajj pilgrims to demonstrate discipline during their stay in Saudi Arabia and thanked the Kingdom for ensuring the best arrangements for the pilgrims.
The statement came amid Pakistan’s ongoing pre-Hajj flight operation to ferry pilgrims to the Kingdom for the annual pilgrimage. Several Hajj flights left Pakistan for the Kingdom on Thursday, Arab News reported.
Ambassador Farooq and Pakistan’s Hajj Director General Abdul Wahab Soomro warmly welcomed the Pakistani pilgrims upon arrival in the holy city of Madinah. “Pilgrims should demonstrate best discipline to increase the prestige of the country,” the Ambassador said and added, we are grateful to the Saudi government for making the best arrangements for Hajj pilgrims.
DG Hajj Abdul Wahab Soomro said that the pre-Hajj flight operation was ongoing successfully and feedback about different facilities would be sought from pilgrims through the Pak Hajj app. Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and requires every adult Muslim to undertake the journey to the holy Islamic sites in Makkah at least once in their lifetime, if they are financially and physically able, he said.
Soomro said Pakistan has a Hajj quota of 179,210 pilgrims this year, according to the Pakistani Religious Affairs Ministry. Of them, 63,805 pilgrims will be performing the pilgrimage under the government scheme, while the rest would be accommodated by private tour operators, he added.
