The post-Haj operation to bring back about 150,000 Pakistani pilgrims from Saudi Arabia will be completed with arrival of last Haj flight of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), PK-2234 carrying more than 400 pilgrims at Karachi airport on early Friday, February 25. "So far, more than 140,000 pilgrims have been brought back by 407 special Haj flights since the start of post-Haj operation on January 24," Secretary, Ministry of Religious Affairs, Vakil Ahmed Khan told APP here on Monday.

The Secretary said as many as 477 special Haj flights including 73 connecting flights to Faisalabad, Sukkur and Multan were being operated to transport 150,000 pilgrims back to home from the Holy land.

Giving the detail of flights, he said, 68 flights had so far been operated from Jeddah for Federal Capital, 93 for Karachi, 76 for Lahore, 63 for Peshawar, 32 for Quetta, 46 for Multan, 25 for Faisalabad and 2 for Sukkur.

Vakil Ahmed said as many as 200 Pakistani pilgrims died of natural causes especially heart attack before and after performing Haj. All these pilgrims had been buried in two Holy cities, Makkah Al Mukkarramh and Madina Al Munawarah, he added.

About performance of the Haj Medical Mission, he said, it has attended more than 310,152 outdoor patients during the Haj season.

Copyright Associated Press of Pakistan, 2005