JEDDAH/BAGHDAD, 17 February — The first group of around 1,000 Iraqi pilgrims yesterday left Baghdad for Makkah in a convoy of 15 buses. Iraq's Religious Affairs Minister Abdul Moneem Ahmad Saleh, who was in Saudi Arabia last month to finalize Haj preparations for the Iraqi pilgrims, said "more than 10,000 Iraqis are set to make the pilgrimage this year."
Saleh told reporters that "the majority of Iraqi pilgrims will travel to Saudi Arabia by road." The road journey will take at least 24 hours. Last year Iraq sent four planeloads of pilgrims despite the imposition of a "no-fly" zone in southern Iraq.
He said the number of Iraqi pilgrims had been falling as a result of the United Nations sanctions imposed on Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait.
Under a Haj quota system set by the Organization of the Islamic Conference, Iraq has the right to send 24,700 pilgrims, but has not succeeded in sending that number due to economic problems.
The Haj, one of the five pillars of Islam, will start in the first week of March when more than two million pilgrims will gather in Makkah and other holy sites. Haj is obligatory for all healthy Muslims having the financial means to carry it out.
"The pilgrims had to bear the Haj expenses by themselves because of financial constraints caused by the UN sanctions," Saleh said.
Maj. Gen. Abdul Aziz Sajeeni, director general of the Saudi Passports Department, said on Thursday that all entry points in the Kingdom would start receiving the Iraqi pilgrims from today. He said his officers would treat Iraqis like other pilgrims, adding that they would be provided with all facilities.
"The Arar border post has been readied to receive the Iraqi pilgrims who come by buses. The manpower at the checkpoint has been beefed up to complete the immigration procedures as quickly as possible," he added. Sajeeni said the Iraqi Haj flights would also be handled like other Haj flights.
The Saudi official said the department had not yet detected any false Haj visas this year. He denied reports that Saudi authorities had prevented pilgrims from an Islamic country who came on forged Haj visas.
Sajeeni also urged Saudis and expatriate residents to get Haj permits before proceeding to the holy sites. "Those who violate the law will be turned back," he warned.
