Number of Umrah overstayers has declined: Al-Farsy

JEDDAH: Of the three million foreign pilgrims who arrived in the Kingdom for Umrah so far this year, 2.8 million have returned to their countries after completing their religious rites.

“The remaining 200,000 are either in Makkah or Madinah, and the number of those who stay illegally has declined to less than 0.5 percent this year,” said Haj Minister Fouad Al-Farsy in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency.

Al-Farsy, who was speaking following a tour of the Tawafa organizations in Makkah on Saturday, attributed the huge crowds in the two holy cities to an influx of domestic pilgrims and those coming from GCC countries.

The minister added that the advanced technology in telecommunications would ensure speedy processing of formalities related to Haj, which is in December.

“The ministry has taken all necessary steps to employ advanced technology for smooth conduct of pilgrimage. The ministry is linked through a network to the Tawafa organizations and with the help of networking the time required for grouping and other formalities would be cut considerably,” the Haj minister said. He commended the efforts of Interior Minister Prince Naif, who is also the chairman of the Higher Committee for Haj, and Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, who is the chairman of the Central Haj Committee, in overcoming the difficulties faced by Haj officials in the preparation for Haj.

In his statement, the minister rejected the notion that the demolition of several buildings close to the Grand Mosque has created a shortage of residential facilities. “The number of licenses issued for housing pilgrims shows that the demolition of buildings and hotels for the expansion project has not negatively affected the number of accommodation available to pilgrims,” he said.

The minister added that licenses for pilgrim accommodation in Madinah would be issued by the end of September.

The minister also visited nongovernmental establishments for pilgrims from Turkey, Europe, America, Australia and Iran.

Al-Farsy was briefed on the arrangements made by these establishments to serve pilgrims. Hatim Kadi, undersecretary of the ministry, accompanied the minister during the tour.