Staff Report
ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Hajj and Umrah Dr. Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Benten telephoned his Pakistani counterpart Pir Dr. Noorul Haq Qadri and formally conveyed the kingdom’s decision of holding Hajj with very limited pilgrims this year.
Noorul Haq Qadri in a Twitter statement said that the Saudi government will allow only its citizens and Iqama holders to perform the annual ritual of Hajj this year due to the coronavirus fears.
The Saudi minister informed his counterpart that this decision was taken to stave off further spread of the highly contagious disease. Meanwhile, an emergency meeting of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony has been convened to discuss the situation stemming from Saudi Arabia’s decision to hold Hajj 2020 with a very limited number of pilgrims residing in the country.
The meeting will thrash out a mechanism for returning money to the pilgrims who had registered themselves for Hajj under the government scheme.
