DUSHANBE, January 4, Asia-Plus - The first group of Tajik Hajjis is returning home today afternoon, Rustam Rustamov, deputy head of the TajikAir (national air carrier) resources management unit, said.

According to him, the next group of 150 Tajik Hajjis will arrive in Dushanbe today night.   Rustamov said that the national air carrier will operate flights to return Tajik Hajjis from Jeddah until January 18. 

We will recall that this time 4,623 Tajik Muslims made holy journey to Mecca.  Under a quota allotted by Saudi Arabia, 3,600 people from Tajikistan made the Hajj to Mecca in early 2006.  This time, there were no restrictions on the number of pilgrims and anyone over the age of 18 who wishes might make the journey.  

Unfortunately, a 69-year-old Hajji from the village of Mirpok in the Kulob district Madullo Madaliyev died in a stampede in Mecca on December 21. 

The Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, the birthplace of Islam, is one of the central religious duties of Muslims and is enshrined in the Qur’an.  The pilgrimage is also inspired by the earlier example of obedience to God set by the Prophet Ibrahim.

The Hajj to Mecca is an once-in-a-lifetime obligation upon male and female adults whose health and means permit it.  Hajj takes place each year between the 8th and the 13th days of Zul-Hijjah, the 12th month of the Muslim lunar calendar.