AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The first group of Iranian Hajj pilgrims will leave the country for Saudi Arabia on May 13, 2024.
This is according to Seyed Abbas Hosseini, head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, who made the statement in an interview with IRIB on Monday.
The outgoing flights to Saudi Arabia will continue until June 2, the report noted, adding that Iranians will remain in Saudi Arabia for an average of 33 days.
According to Hajj officials, 87,550 have finalized the registration for taking part in the spiritual journey this year.
Hojat-ol-Islam Abdul Fattah Navab, the representative of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Hajj and Pilgrimage Affairs, announced on Monday the motto of Iran for this year's Hajj. “Hajj: Quran-centrism, sympathy, authority of Muslim Ummah, and defense of oppressed Palestine” has been chosen as the motto, he told in a meeting of Hajj officials with Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Khamenei.
He also said that Iranian pilgrims will be transported between Mecca and Medina using trains.
Last year, some 85,000 Iranians took part in the Hajj pilgrimage, marking a 114% rise compared to the year before, which saw restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Every year, except for the years that the number of pilgrims was reduced due to the coronavirus pandemic, nearly three million Muslims from around the world gather in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for the annual Hajj.
Hajj is a pilgrimage to Mecca that every able-bodied and financially able Muslim is obliged to undertake at least once during their lifetime.
The annual pilgrimage is regarded as one of the pillars of Islam and the largest act of mass pilgrimage in the world.
It is also a demonstration of Muslims’ unity and their submission to Allah.
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