ISLAMABAD: The preparations have been finalized for the post-Hajj operation to bring Pakistani pilgrims to home, the ministry of religious affairs said on Saturday.
The first flight carrying 391 pilgrims from Jeddah will land in Sialkot on the morning of June 1st, the ministry said in a statement. The ministry said that total 22 flights with Hajj pilgrims onboard will land at various airports on June 1st.
Hajj 2026: Over 1.7 million pilgrims from 165 countries complete pilgrimage
Earlier, more than 1.7 million Muslims performed the Hajj pilgrimage this year, according to the Saudi General Authority for Statistics.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, the authority said a total of 1,707,301 pilgrims completed the annual pilgrimage.
Of these, 1,546,655 pilgrims arrived from outside Saudi Arabia, representing 165 nationalities, while 160,646 domestic pilgrims included Saudi citizens and foreign residents living in the Kingdom.
The data also showed a near-even gender distribution among pilgrims, with 893,396 men and 813,905 women performing Hajj this year.
According to the statistics, the majority of international pilgrims arrived by air, with 1,485,729 traveling via flights. An additional 54,429 arrived by land routes, while 6,497 entered the Kingdom by sea.
The figures mark a slight increase compared to last year, when 1,673,230 pilgrims performed Hajj, according to official data.
The annual pilgrimage is one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, drawing Muslims from across the globe to the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah in Saudi Arabia.
