Riyadh: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has announced the imposition of a fine of 50,000 Saudi Riyals (Rs 10,52,023) and six month jail for anyone caught illegally transporting Haj pilgrims.
The general directorate of passports, Jawazat has warned that the penalties also include announcing the names of the violators in the local media, in addition to confiscating the means of transportation employed. The penalty is doubled if transportation is available to more than one pilgrim.
The offender will be deported from the kingdom after serving the penalty handed to him and will be barred from re-entering the kingdom.
On Wednesday, June 29, Saudi Arabia announced the imposition of a fine of 10,000 Saudi riyals on people who try to perform Haj without obtaining permits.
On Thursday, June 30, Saudi Arabia authorities arrested 15 people in two separate operations for offering fraudulent Haj-related services.
On Tuesday, June 28, the Kingdom arrested 19 people, over the same allegations.
It is noteworthy that the first pioneers of Haj pilgrims this year arrived on Saturday, June 4, through Prince Muhammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah, coming from Indonesia, as part of a delegation of 450 pilgrims.
On April 9, 2022, the ministry announced that one million – 850,000 foreigners and 150,000 domestic, will perform Haj this year – less than half the number that used to during pre-pandemic days.
The pilgrimage is one of the five pillars of Islam, a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it. 2020 and 2021 witnessed an exceptional season for Haj, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
Haj 2022 officially begins on the 8th of Zul Hijjah and ends on the 13th day of the same Islamic month. This year it falls between July 7 to 12.
