Indonesian pilgrims record the largest presence in Madinah

RELAXED: Indonesian pilgrims pose for a photo on arrival in Madinah.

RIYADH: Indonesian Haj pilgrims formed the highest number among those who have currently moved from Makkah to Madinah.
Most pilgrims visit Madinah after Haj. However, those who land in Madinah first fly out of Jeddah after their pilgrimage.
According to statistics provided by the Civil Institution of Guides in the region, a total of 16,720 Indonesian pilgrims were present in Madinah out of the 259,709 Hajis present in Madinah on Saturday.
On Saturday, some 27,598 pilgrims arrived in Madinah to visit the Prophet’s Mosque after performing Haj in Makkah.
At present, there is a total of 136,403 pilgrims after 123,275 pilgrims left Madinah on Sunday.
Some 68 out of the 168,000 Indonesians pilgrims died in Makkah during this season.
Just five days ahead of the ultimate Haj ritual, wukuf (or standing in the plain of Arafat) on Sept.10, four Indonesia pilgrims passed away in Makkah.
According to the ministry’s computerized Haj integrated information system’s health data, the four were identified as Sikan bin Bait Sabut, 59, Nana Supena binti Uba R., 64, Budiyanto bin Lihan Suliman, 57, and Suhaimi bin Jamain Abdul Gafur, 62.
The four pilgrims died of natural causes, such as respiratory illness, heart disease and blood pressure problems, Indonesia's Antara news agency said.
The Indonesian government has pledged that all Indonesian pilgrims who die during Haj and those who pass away while waiting for their departure at embarkation points in Indonesia will have their Haj rituals performed on behalf of them.
Most of deceased pilgrims were in their 60s. Pilgrims who died during this year’s Haj season were aged between 41 and 82 years.
According to the General Authority for Statistics (GaStat), foreign pilgrims who performed Haj this year amounted to 54.6 percent male and 45.4 percent female.
Around 94 percent of pilgrims came for Haj by air, while 5 percent came by land, and the rest by sea.
The total number of pilgrims has been lower in the past three years than previous years because of the ongoing construction work in the two holy cities.