DUSHANBE, December 13, Asia-Plus — On Tuesday December 12, Tajik national air carrier TajikAir operated three flights to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to carry first 450 Tajik pilgrims there, Rustam Rustamov, deputy head of the TajikAir resources management unit, said in an interview with Asia-Plus.
According to him, in all, the national air carrier is scheduled to operate 28 flights to Jeddah to carry 4,500 Tajik pilgrims there.
“Eight flights will be operated from Khujand,” Rustamov said, noting that first groups of pilgrims flew to Jeddah from Khujand today. 1,200 Muslims from northern Tajikistan will make the hajj this year.
Jeddah, a Saudi Arabia
city located on the coast of the Red Sea, is the second largest city in Saudi Arabia after the capital city Riyadh.
Jeddah is the principal gateway to Mecca
, the holiest city of Islam
, which able-bodied Muslims are required to visit at least once in a lifetime.
Under a quota allotted by Saudi Arabia, 3,600 people from Tajikistan made the Hajj to Mecca in early 2006. This time, there are no restrictions on the number of pilgrims and anyone over the age of 18 who wishes may make the journey, according to the committee source.
The Hajj, a journey to the holy cities of Mecca and Medina, is one of the five pillars of Islam. The pilgrimage is conducted during Zul-Hijjah, the last month of the lunar calendar used by Muslims.
