JEDDAH, 28 December 2006 — A group of Chechen pilgrims stranded after their bus broke down at Halat Ammar near the Kingdom’s border with Jordan has been provided free transportation to Makkah and Madinah, according to Khalifa ibn Hajhouj Al-Khalifa, supervisor of Haj and Umrah affairs at the border point.
He said the pilgrims were given free transportation on the instructions of Tabuk Governor Prince Fahd ibn Sultan, adding that the Chechens have already left Tabuk for Madinah. He did not say when the pilgrims arrived at the border.
In a similar development, Madinah Governor Prince Abdul Aziz ibn Majed instructed officials that 22 sick pilgrims, who were admitted to hospitals in the holy city, be transported to Arafat to help them participate in the standing in prayer at Arafat, the main pillar of the Haj. The pilgrims will be taken to Arafat in well-equipped ambulances accompanied by doctors.
Dr. Nabeel Abdullah Yamani, supervisor of health affairs in Madinah, said 21 chronically ill pilgrims would not be able to perform Haj as they require constant observation.
Yamani said as many as 373 pilgrims admitted at Madinah hospitals have been discharged. He put the number of pilgrims died in Madinah at 131.
According to a report issued by the Central Haj Committee, 243 pilgrims have so far died this Haj season as a result of diseases.
The committee estimated the number of foreign pilgrims who have come from different parts of the world at 1,638,837, adding that they came through King Abdul Aziz Airport in Jeddah, Prince Muhammad Airport in Madinah, Jeddah Islamic Port and other entry points.
Meanwhile, a group of Turkish women have come to perform Haj this year as guests of the Science Club in Makkah. Dr. Iman Abu Mansour, head of the organizing team, said their guests included university professors, doctors, writers and mediapersons.
The Turkish guests have visited the Kaaba Cover Factory and the Zamzam Distribution Center. They were briefed on the history of Makkah and the Grand Mosque and the merits of Zamzam water.
