ISLAMABAD: Saudi Ambassador Nawaf Saeed Al-Malikiy has maintained that Saudi Arabia will provide the best facilities to pilgrims as the Royal leadership keeps Pakistan and its people close to its heart. The historic operation ‘Road to Makkah’ project would start from today (Sunday) with the departure of the first Haj flight from the federal capital that would provide unprecedented facilities to pilgrims from Pakistan, the ambassador said on Saturday evening while addressing leading people from civil society, religious scholars and senior diplomats at the residence of Federal Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony Senator Talha Mahmood, who hosted a dinner to mark the beginning of the project. The implementing officials and staff of the project have reached Pakistan to assume their duties. They were also present at the dinner and Senator Talha presented them souvenirs on the occasion. A special memento was offered to Ambassador Nawaf.
Ambassador Nawaf bin Saeed Almalikiy said the Saudi government had made arrangements for taking 26,000 Haj pilgrims from Islamabad airport and they would avail the Road to Makkah project for the first time in Pakistan.
The pilgrims who will be boarding the plane from Islamabad wouldn’t be required to wait at any Saudi airport for immigration as their immigration would be carried out at the Islamabad airport.
His announcement was welcomed by the guests by a thunderous applause. Ambassador Nawaf Al-Malikiy has been serving as the KSA envoy for six years in Islamabad and before that he was the Military Attache of Saudi Arabia at the Kingdom’s mission for three years.
Talking to The News, he revealed that he would ensure that the Road to Makkah project was enforced at Pakistan airports in his presence in the next two years. He was very pleased about the start of the project from Islamabad. The pilgrims, who board from Islamabad this year, would be taken straight to the Haram after landing in the Kingdom since their immigration would have been done here before embarking the flight. Malikiy told the gathering that Saudi Arabia has extended the facility of the Road to Makkah Project to seven countries, including Turkey.
Earlier, the facility was extended to five countries. Federal Minister Senator Talha Mahmood in his welcoming address thanked the Saudi King Muhammad Salman, Prime Minister, Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman and royal authorities for their personal interest in making the facility available to the people of Pakistan as priority.