Over 180,000 Haj permits will be issued to local pilgrims from Saturday, said Saad Jameel Al-Qurashi, Chairman of the National Committee for Haj and Umrah. He said local transportation has been solved for pilgrims at the holy sites starting from Friday. “A total of 1,600 buses are scheduled to enter the holy sites. Of these, 1,000 buses are from Turkey, 250 from Lebanon and the rest from Egypt,” he was quoted as saying in Al-Madina Arabic daily newspaper. He said about 18,000 pilgrims will perform Haj at the expense of businessmen and charities. Al-Mashair Train tickets will be distributed from next Tuesday to Haj companies and establishments, but only after these firms send certified bank checks, said Al-Qurashi. He said 20 companies providing low-cost Haj packages – between SR1,900 and SR3,900 – have stopped accepting applications from pilgrims. These companies will provide food and housing to this group of pilgrims for a period of four days starting from Al-Tarwiyah Day and their move to Arafat, Muzdalifa and then Mina to stone the Jamarat. He said local expatriate pilgrims who intend to perform Haj must get the consent of their employers otherwise they will not get Haj permits.
