ISLAMABAD: Around 160,000 Pakistani pilgrims will perform Hajj this year, a government official said on Wednesday, as people continue to reach Makkah ahead of the annual pilgrimage scheduled for later this month.
Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, requiring every adult Muslim to undertake the pilgrimage to the holy Islamic sites in Makkah at least once in their lifetime if they are financially and physically able.
Pakistan has a Hajj quota of 179,210 pilgrims this year, of which around 70,000 people will perform the pilgrimage under the government scheme, while the rest will use private tour operators.
This year’s pilgrimage is expected to run from June 14-19.
“160,000 Pakistani pilgrims are performing Hajj this year,” the religious affairs ministry spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday. “Nearly 90,000 Pakistani pilgrims will perform Hajj through private Hajj companies.”
The official said 55,284 pilgrims had reached Makkah via 214 flights under the government Hajj scheme while over 30,000 others were present in Saudi Arabia with private Hajj tour operators.
The spokesperson concluded that the Hajj flight operation that began on May 9 would continue till June 9.
Separately, the Pakistan Hajj Mission (PHM) has also been conducting regular inspections of kitchens run by catering companies to ensure hygienic food supply to pilgrims arriving in the Kingdom to perform Hajj.
On June 4, the PHM imposed 17 penalties amounting to SAR 263,580 ($71,000) on six catering companies contracted to provide meals to Pakistani pilgrims. Nine catering companies have been employed to fulfill the food demands of pilgrims.
A 400-member dedicated Pakistan Hajj Medical Mission is also working around the clock to serve Pakistani pilgrims in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan has established two hospitals and 11 dispensaries in the Saudi cities of Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah to provide health care to Hajj pilgrims.
160,000 Pakistani pilgrims to perform Hajj this year — religious affairs ministry
https://arab.news/8pskx
160,000 Pakistani pilgrims to perform Hajj this year — religious affairs ministry
- 55,284 pilgrims have reached Makkah via 214 flights operated as part of government scheme
- Around 70,000 will perform Hajj under the government scheme, rest will use private operators
Pakistan announces compensation for Islamabad mosque blast that killed over 30
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visits Islamabad mosque, meets family members of victims who were killed in blast
- Sharif announces compensation of $18,000 for relatives of those killed in attack, $10,800 for those seriously injured
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday announced compensation for the victims of a suicide attack earlier this month that targeted a mosque in Islamabad, vowing that sacrifices of those who gave their lives would not go in vain.
At least 32 people were killed and over 150 others sustained injuries in a suicide blast last Friday that targeted Imam Bargah Qasr-e-Khadijatul Kubra mosque in the Tarlai Kallan area located on Islamabad’s outskirts.
The blast occurred during Friday prayers at the packed mosque, with Daesh saying one of its militants had targeted the congregation by detonating an explosive vest.
Sharif visited the mosque with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and other officials on Wednesday. He met relatives of the blast and offered prayers for them.
“Rs5 million [$18,000] will be given to the families of each martyr, Rs3 million [$10,800] to those seriously injured, and Rs1 million [$3,600] to others who suffered minor injuries,” a statement from Sharif’s office said.
Sharif also announced Rs10 million [$36,800] for the family of Aun Abbas, who had resisted the suicide bomber. He later visited Abbas’ residence and offered prayers for his soul and met his family.
“The entire nation, including myself, is deeply grieved over the heinous, despicable, and extremely deplorable act of terrorism on Feb. 6,” the Pakistani prime minister said.
During his visit to the mosque, the prime minister was briefed about the attack by police and district administration authorities who accompanied him.
Friday’s mosque blast was the deadliest in Islamabad since a 2008 suicide bombing at the Marriott Hotel that killed 63 people and wounded more than 250. In November last year, a suicide bomber struck outside a court in the capital, killing 12 people.
Tallal Chaudry, Pakistan’s state minister for interior, blamed the Islamabad mosque attack on militants that he said were “sponsored by India and supported by Afghanistan.”
Both countries have always denied Islamabad’s accusations of supporting militant groups who carry out attacks in Pakistan.
