MAKKAH — The Haj Ministry will accept visa extension requests from pilgrims who are staying in the Kingdom under special circumstances even after the Haj season was declared over on Oct. 28, the director of the ministry's branch in Makkah Abdul Rahman Al-Nifaie said. "We have been receiving requests from pilgrims who are unable to travel home for reasons beyond their control," he said. Nifaie said the visa extension applications were received from pilgrims confined to hospitals or those who are forced to stay with their companions who were detained for various security reasons and the relatives of pilgrims who died during the September crane crash in the Grand Mosque or the Mina stampede. He said the requests were accepted under certain conditions within the directives of the leadership to provide all facilities to the guests of God. "The Haj service providers have commitments toward their pilgrims until they leave the Kingdom," he said. Meanwhile, Haj Minister Bandar Al-Hajjar said 41 companies have been licensed to serve Umrah pilgrims for this season which will start within a week. The minister on Tuesday met senior officials from his ministry and other departments concerned with Umrah services to discuss the arrangements made to receive and serve the pilgrims. About 48 service companies were licensed last year to serve the pilgrims during the season which began late last October and continued until August 2015. The licenses will be granted to the companies under certain conditions including depositing a bank guarantee of SR2 million to the ministry which is valid for the entire season, making reservations in hotels, furnished apartments or other buildings and providing pilgrims with transport.
