JEDDAH, 6 October 2003 — The Shoura Council held its weekly meeting in Riyadh yesterday and approved the new pilgrims’ transportation law, which stipulates the regulations for various carriers including airlines and ships transporting pilgrims to the Kingdom and back home.
Dr. Hamoud Al-Badr, secretary-general of the Shoura Council, told the Saudi Press Agency that the new law compelled every foreign pilgrim carrier to have a licensed agent in the Kingdom.
Foreign carriers and their Saudi agents must provide food and accommodation to pilgrims if they fail to transport the pilgrims back home in the specified time until they leave even if the delay is only a few hours. Saudi authorities must take steps to transport pilgrims if their carrier fails to transport them within five days from their scheduled departure date at the expense of the carrier and its agent.
The carriers must provide a list of pilgrims with their passport numbers and other required information to Saudi authorities soon after their arrival. If an air carrier fails to arrive or leave the Kingdom within a fixed time, a fine of SR10,000 will be levied for every arriving flight and SR15,000 for every departing flight.
