AhlulBayt News Agency: Some areas of the Grand Mosque in Mecca remain inaccessible to Hajj pilgrims with disabilities, an Indonesian official has stated.
Muchlis Hanafi, Director of Foreign Hajj Services at the Indonesian Religious Affairs Ministry and Chairperson of the 2025 Hajj Worship Organizing Committee, noted that despite improvements made by Saudi authorities, pilgrims with special needs still require intensive supervision.
The Ministry of Religious Affairs, through the Saudi Arabian Hajj Worship Organizing Committee, has developed technical guidelines to ensure a more elderly-friendly and disability-friendly Hajj experience. These include special tent placements in Arafah and Mina with easy access to toilets.
Muchlis further explained that movement schemes have been implemented to accommodate pilgrims with disabilities. These include safari wukuf—allowing pilgrims who cannot stand in Arafah to fulfill the requirement—and murur, which enables pilgrims with disabilities to pass through Muzdalifah without staying overnight.
Efforts to remove barriers also involve coordinating wheelchair services with local providers and engaging volunteer support personnel, particularly Middle Eastern student volunteers, to assist in companion activities.
"We are strengthening the special needs reporting system to ensure that every pilgrim with disabilities receives documented, systematic assistance from the moment they arrive until the peak of worship," Muchlis stated.
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