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Indonesia starts sending haj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia
More than 7,000 Indonesian pilgrims departed for Saudi Arabia during the first wave of this year’s haj departure, marking the official start of the annual pilgrimage for millions of Muslims worldwide.
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Leading the way: Haj pilgrims walk to the departure terminal at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Thursday, ahead of their flights to Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Medina, Saudi Arabia. Nearly 400 pilgrims from Jakarta are the first group of pilgrims to fly to Saudi Arabia, marking the start of the 2025 haj season for more than 200,000 Indonesian pilgrims. (Antara/Muhammad Iqbal)
T
he first groups of Indonesian haj pilgrims departed to Saudi Arabia on Friday, marking the start of the annual pilgrimage for hundreds of thousands of Muslims from Indonesia, who will perform religious rituals on Saudi Arabia’s scorching summer days.
The first group of pilgrims from Jakarta, comprising 393 pilgrims, departed from the Asrama Haji Pondok Gede in East Jakarta to the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Thursday evening.
The group, consisting of 171 male and 222 female pilgrims, took off from Soekarno-Hatta for Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Medina, Saudi Arabia at 12:45 a.m. on Friday, marking the official start of this year’s pilgrimage.
During a send-off ceremony at the Asrama Haji complex, Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar reminded pilgrims to prepare themselves physically and mentally for the pilgrimage.
“The haj trip is not an ordinary trip. This is a trip to the sky. Therefore, you should focus and be sincere, because sincerity is the strongest vitamin to support you during this trip,” Nasaruddin told the pilgrims on Thursday, as quoted by a statement from the ministry.
The minister also warned the pilgrims to adhere to all regulations during the trip, including for them to have an official haj visa issued by the Saudi government.
Read also: Government, lawmakers agree to lower haj costs
