The first batch of pilgrims for the 2024 Hajj will depart from Tamale International Airport on Tuesday, May 28, for Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Over 4,000 pilgrims are expected to participate in this year’s Hajj.
The government established the Dawah Committee to guide the pilgrims. Abdul-Rahman Gomda, Communications Director for the Hajj Board, cautioned pilgrims to cooperate with organizers to ensure a smooth experience. “There have been instances where people don’t take instructions from us. You tell them what to do, and they want to do what they want to do,” he told Citi News.
He also urged pilgrims to be very religious to benefit spiritually from the pilgrimage to Mecca. The government established the Dawah Committee, which is comprised of Islamic clergy members, to guide the pilgrims.
Subsequent flights from Tamale are scheduled for May 29 and 30, with the final departure slated for May 31. Accra flights will commence on June 2, followed by additional departures on June 3 and 4. The fourth and fifth flights will leave Accra on June 5 and 6, respectively, all bound for Madina, Saudi Arabia. Climate change poses health risk to hajj pilgrims.
The hajj pilgrimage can be physically draining even in ideal conditions, but worshippers this year face an added challenge: scorching sun and temperatures rising to 42 degrees Celsius. Islam forbids men from wearing hats once the hajj rites start.
Muslims who have flocked to western Saudi Arabia for the five-day ritual, most of which takes place in the open air, have been confronted with a stark reminder of how warming trends are exacerbating what was already a scorching desert climate.
Though pilgrims generally shy from complaining, the result is a daunting endurance test.
