Riyadh: Saudi Arabia has begun distributing two million copies of the Quran to departing pilgrims.
The copies are gifts from King Salman bin Abdulaziz, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance informed.
Public employees who served and volunteered during the Haj are also been presented with the Quran.
Copies of the Quran are available in various sizes. They have been printed in over 77 languages.
This distribution of the Quran initiative comes as part of the directives of the King. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is overseeing the process.
More than 1.84 million from more than 150 countries came to perform Haj in Saudi Arabia this year, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
According to the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT), 1,660,915 pilgrims came to the Kingdom through various ports, while the number of domestic pilgrims reached 184,130, including both citizens and residents.
The number of male pilgrims reached 969,694, making up the majority of the total, while the number of female pilgrims reached 875,351.
According to the authority’s data, the number of pilgrims from Arab countries reached 346,214, or 21 percent of the total. The number of pilgrims from Asian countries reached 1,056,317, or 63.5 percent.
Pilgrims from African countries reached 221,863, making up 13.4 percent of the total.
The number of pilgrims from Europe, America, Australia, and other unclassified countries reached 36,521, accounting for 2.1 percent of the total.
Regarding means of arrival from outside the Kingdom, the GASTAT reported that a total of 1,593,271 pilgrims arrived through airports, while 60,813 pilgrims arrived through land ports, and 6,831 pilgrims arrived through seaports.
The GASTAT also revealed that the Makkah Road initiative included seven countries, with a total of 242,272 pilgrims benefiting from this initiative.
