JEDDAH, 8 June — The Ministry of Haj has ordered the suspension of the activities of 14 Umrah organizations effective from today because of their failure to fulfill contractual obligations with the pilgrims.
They are also charged with selling Umrah visas allocated to them. The names of the erring companies have not been released.
The move comes as part of the ministry’s efforts to curb the sale of visas and the unacceptable practice of several pilgrims sleeping in open spaces.
The ministry has also decided to transfer the responsibility of looking after the pilgrims who have been left unattended by their Umrah establishments to other organizations. The fees for these services will be deducted from the deposits made by the erring organizations, said Muhammad Saleh Bentan, undersecretary for Umrah affairs at the Ministry of Haj.
“These steps are introduced with the aim of ending the phenomenon of pilgrims sleeping in the streets. The Umrah service establishments are responsible for the pilgrims from the day of their arrival in the Kingdom until they depart,” Bentan said.
He added that any Umrah service establishment which allows pilgrims to seek accommodation outside its premises should present evidence to prove that these pilgrims have been accommodated in hotels or furnished apartments.
Seven Umrah establishments were summoned for inquiries on Monday on charges of refusing to fulfill their responsibilities to 216 pilgrims who were found sleeping out in the neighborhood of the Grand Mosque recently.
Umrah visas will be issued only to establishments which are willing to provide facilities such as transportation and accommodation to the pilgrims. The licenses of the companies which violate these conditions will be cancelled.
Bentan disclosed that the ministries of Haj and foreign affairs and the Saudi embassies are linked via computer with the aim of issuing visa for pilgrims in just 24 hours.
