Haj pilgrims stranded due to airport chaos

AIRPORT CHAOS: Hundreds of Muslims are awaiting flights out of Jeddah airport, pictured.

Hundreds of Haj pilgrims have again been left stranded at King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah due to flight delays, confusion over excess baggage allowances and poor bus services to the airport.

Hajis from Mauritania, Morocco and Egypt were among those stuck at the airport looking for any available flight out of the kingdom, UAE daily Gulf News reported on Sunday.

The debacle follows a similar incident during Eid Al Fitr when almost 8,000 Egyptians were left without flights out of Saudi Arabia.

Airport officials blamed the pilgrims’ refusal to pay excess baggage for the delays and the fact that buses transporting travellers to the airport were not running on schedule.

“The surprise inspection orders by some foreign airlines and the poor service in dealing with excess baggage are among the reasons that led to the delay of some flights,” one official told the newspaper.

Millions of Muslims from around the world flock to the kingdom every year to perform the annual Haj pilgrimage, which begins on the eighth day of the month of Dhi Al-Haja under the lunar calendar.

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