MAKKAH — The Makkah Route Initiative has served 242,272 pilgrims from seven countries for this year's Hajj.

It has completed its mandate for the year, following the successful arrival of all beneficiaries in Saudi Arabia from various countries including Morocco, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkey and, for the first time, Côte d'Ivoire.

The pilgrims arrived on 667 flights at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and the Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah.

The Initiative aims to streamline travel procedures for pilgrims before they depart from their home countries.

It facilitates issuing electronic visas, gathering biometric data, handling all travel-related procedures at the departure airport, ensuring pilgrims have a clean bill of health, and coding and sorting baggage according to transportation and accommodation arrangements in Saudi Arabia.

Upon arrival in the Kingdom, the pilgrims are transported directly by buses to their accommodations in Makkah and Madinah. — SPA