MADINAH: ARAB NEWS
Published — Sunday 10 November 2013

More than 1.44 million Haj pilgrims visited Madinah this year, recent statistics have revealed.

Hani Jamaan Al-Husseini, head of the statistical reports unit at the Guides Organization in Madinah, said 755,920 pilgrims visited the city before the Haj and 482,124 after the Haj. He said 119 pilgrims died in Madinah this year, which includes 70 people who died before the Haj. “Their bodies were buried in Madinah in collaboration with the Haj missions of their home countries,” he said.

He said the Center to Help Missing People assisted 14,415 pilgrims return to their groups. A total of 9,486 pilgrims lost their way before the Haj.

Al-Husseini said the statistical unit compiles daily reports on the number and nationality of pilgrims arriving and leaving the city, deaths, and those who lost their way. These are posted on unit’s website and copies are also sent to various government agencies.