The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has disclosed that 10,687 Muslim faithful are currently in Saudi Arabia performing this year’s Hajj.
Statistics made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) by NAHCON, yesterday, in Madinah, indicated that the pilgrims were transported between July 21 and yesterday, August 3, with transportation of prospective pilgrims still ongoing.
Giving a breakdown of the figures, NAHCON stated that 6, 477 of the pilgrims were males, while 4, 210 were females.
In all, 10 states have so far moved their pilgrims for the annual rites, with Kogi having 446 pilgrims; Nasarawa, 616; Kaduna, 1,627; Kwara, 1,111; Kano, 2,132; Sokoto, 1,304; Kebbi, 1,275; Lagos, 320; Adamawa, 546 and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), 1,310 pilgrims.
Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims, and a mandatory religious duty that must be carried out at least once in a lifetime.
Participants are adult Muslims, who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey and can support their families during their absence.
