7,000 Palestinians Take Hajj This Year, King Salman Saudi Arabia Invites 1,000 Families Of Gaza War Victims

JAKARTA - About 7,000 Palestinians will perform the pilgrimage this year, amid a war with Israel that hit the country, with about 1,000 of them coming from the Gaza Strip receiving an invitation from King Salman bin Abdulaziz.

The servant of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, has removed the kingdom to accommodate 1,000 pilgrims from the families of the martyrs and injured from the Gaza Strip through the "Initiatives of Sheltering for Hajj Pilgrims from the Syuhada Family and those injured from the Gaza Strip," quoted from the Saudi Arabian News Agency (SPA) June 10.

Thus, the total number of pilgrims accommodated from Palestine is 2,000 people, in the Holy Mosque Two Servant Guest Program for Hajj, Umrah and Visits, which are carried out by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Da'wah, and Guidance.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Islamic Affairs, Da'wah, and Guidance, who oversees the Two Holy Mosque Guard Guest Program for Hajj, Umrah and Sheikh Dr's Visit. Abdullatif bin Abdulaziz Al-Sheikh, expressed his gratitude to the Servants of the Two Holy Mosques and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.

So far this year, 2,508 Gazans have been registered as pilgrims intending to go to Saudi Arabia for Hajj. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Waqf and Religious Affairs, 2,000 men and women from the West Bank have traveled to Jordan with 69 buses, on their way to Saudi Arabia, while 1,200 others will fly to the kingdom.

"This extraordinary acceptance of guests is a support and relief for what the Palestinian people have suffered in the Gaza Strip, and this humanitarian act is not uncommon for Saudi Arabia to stand side by side with the Palestinian people," Minister Al-Sheikh said, quoted by The National News.

Separately, Deputy Minister of Waqf and Palestinian Religious Affairs Hussam Abu al-Rub met with Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Arab Hajj Mutawif Company (Ashraqat) Muhammad Maajini, during his visit to his office in Makkah, to discuss services for some 7,000 Palestinian pilgrims.

Abu al-Rub praised the extraordinary efforts made by the Government of Saudi Arabia to facilitate and ensure the comfort of pilgrims through the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, and all other institutions involved in Hajj.

Separately, health authorities in Gaza announced on Thursday that the death toll of Palestinians since the war broke out on October 7, 2023 has reached 37,124, while 84,712 others were injured, quoted from WAFA.