Pilgrims without Haj permits and those trying to sneak into the holy sites after being sent back from checkpoints will be referred to the Investigation and Prosecution Bureau (IPB) then to Shariah courts, said Major General Mansour Al-Turki, Ministry of Interior spokesman. Addressing a press conference at the headquarters of the Public Security in Makkah, he said 98,321 illegal pilgrims have been sent back from various checkpoints. He said there was an 1.84 percent increase in the number of pilgrims coming from outside the Kingdom, and that preliminary information shows that 1,828,195 pilgrims have arrived from abroad to perform Haj.
