RIYADH: The Kingdom’s Interior Minister and Supreme Hajj Committee Chairman Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif has held separate meetings with senior Iran and Indonesia officials in Jeddah as preparation intensifies for the annual pilgrimage, according to reports by the Saudi Press Agency.
In the talks on Thursday, Prince Abdulaziz received Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization Head Alireza Rashidian and Indonesia’s Hajj and Umrah Minister Mochamad Irfan Yusuf.
Prince Abdulaziz reaffirmed the commitment of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to ensure pilgrims from around the world perform Hajj rituals safely and peacefully.
Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif meeting with Indonesia’s Minister of Hajj and Umrah Mochamad Irfan Yusuf (left) in Jeddah on May 20, 2026. (SPA)
The Saudi and Indonesia ministers reviewed cooperation and coordination related to Hajj operations and discussed issues of mutual interest, SPA reported. Several Saudi officials also attended the talks.
Prince Abdulaziz also received Ashraf Abdel Muti, head of Egypt’s Hajj Affairs Office. The minister welcomed Egypt’s pilgrims and affirmed the commitment of Saudi Arabia’s leaders to ensure top quality service provision.
Muti praised the Kingdom’s leaders and officials for their Hajj preparations. Egypt has a national quota of 90,000 pilgrims.
Prince Abdulaziz receives Ashraf Abdel Muti, head of Egypt’s Hajj Affairs Office, in Jeddah on May 20, 2026. (SPA)
Indonesia continues to have the world’s largest Hajj quota, at 221,000 pilgrims. This includes over 203,000 regular pilgrims and nearly 18,000 special-category individuals, according to the Saudi Ministry of Hajj’s Nusuk Masar platform.
Indonesia has allocated 548 dedicated flights to transport pilgrims to the Kingdom.
Iran’s Hajj quota stands at 87,550 pilgrims, although official dispatches and arrivals data indicate that only about one-third of the allocation is being utilized this year.
Prince Abdulaziz received Alireza Rashidian, head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, in Jeddah on May 20, 2026. (SPA)
Around 30,000 Iranian pilgrims are expected to arrive in the Kingdom on direct flights following the restoration of air access under Saudi Arabia’s crowd-management regulations.
Last year, a reported 76,000 Iranian pilgrims arrived in Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj. Rashidian thanked the Kingdom for its preparations and services, SPA reported.
