Hajj Flakes – 30th Dhu al-Qadah 1447 AH

By Abdullahi Yusuf

1. The crescent of Dhul Hijjah has been sighted in Saudi Arabia. Tomorrow, Monday, will be the first day of Dhul Hijjah, while the Day of Arafah will be observed on Tuesday, May 26.
2. As of now, a total of 32,881 Nigerian pilgrims have been successfully airlifted across 81 flight operations, according to NAHCON.
3. Today, a flight departed Maiduguri to Madinah at 14:21hrs with 313 Yobe pilgrims onboard, according to NAHCON.
4. Another flight departed Minna to Madinah at 13:52hrs with 382 Niger pilgrims and 23 officials onboard.
5. Kaduna State has airlifted 1,158 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia within three days. The first flight departed on May 14 with 426 pilgrims, the second on May 15 with 389 pilgrims, while the third departed on May 16 with 343 pilgrims.
6. According to NAHCON officials in Makkah, pilgrims from Nasarawa, Kogi, Ogun, Ondo, Benue, Plateau, FCT, Borno, Taraba, Katsina, Niger, Sokoto and Bauchi states have been successfully received despite initial delays in room allocations at some locations.
7. An Oyo State pilgrim, Alhaji Dauda Faeez Abimbola, returned 400 dollars and 80 Saudi Riyals reportedly lost by an FCT pilgrim, Usman Abubakar, in Makkah.
8. A top Bauchi State Hajj official, Alhaji Shehu Yahaya Jalam, has died in Makkah after a brief illness. He was the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the Secretary to the State Government and Chairman of the Information and Publicity Committee for the 2026 Hajj operation.
9. NAHCON says over 20,000 Nigerian pilgrims have so far arrived and been fully accommodated in Makkah as preparations intensify for the major rites of Hajj.
10. The commission also disclosed that over 19,000 Nusuk cards have already been issued to Nigerian pilgrims in the Kingdom.
11. NAHCON has also deployed GPS mapping technology to help locate and monitor pilgrims’ accommodations in Makkah.
12. More than 500 medical consultations have already been handled by the National Medical Team operating NAHCON clinics in Madinah and Makkah.
13. Saudi authorities say Mina will operate four major hospitals and up to 30 health centres during the Hajj period to provide free medical care for pilgrims.

Did you know?

1. Many pilgrims return shortly after Hajj, but Saudi authorities often allow departures to continue into Muharram under the official Hajj travel schedule.
2. Egypt’s Hajj system is managed through government lotteries, NGOs, and private tour operators, with widely varying package costs.
3. A white marble marker inside the Grand Mosque aligns with the Black Stone (Hajr al-Aswad) and indicates the start and end point of Tawaf.
4. Pilgrims may walk between 35 and 50 kilometres during the days of Hajj, depending on their accommodation and movement routes.
5. Thousands of tonnes of waste are generated daily during Hajj and are cleared around the clock by massive sanitation teams.

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