Director general of Hajj and Umrah implementation at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Hilman Latief, said that Saudi Arabia is planning to apply an age limit for the pilgrimage—it will not allow pilgrims aged 90 years and above to join Hajj.
"They may limit the pilgrims by not permitting those above 90 years old. The letter will be sent soon," he said during a meeting with the House of Representatives (DPR) here on Friday.
According to Latief, during the last Hajj season, Indonesia had sent elderly pilgrims, including those aged 100 years.
In addition to the restrictions on elderly pilgrims, he said that the government of Saudi Arabia is also planning to limit the number of elderly pilgrims between the ages of 70 and 80 years and above.
"This (an official letter) is what we are waiting for. Something like that. Because we have a 10 percent priority (quota) for older adults," he explained.
Related news: Ministry plans improved services for elderly pilgrims during 2025 Hajj
For the 2025 Hajj, the first flight batch of Indonesian Hajj pilgrims is planned to depart from May 2 to May 16.
This was confirmed by Latief during a meeting with the DPR on Thursday.
According to data from the Integrated Hajj Computerization and Information System of the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Indonesia's Hajj pilgrim quota in 2024 stood at 241 thousand.
The figure comprised 213,320 regular Hajj pilgrims and 27,680 special Hajj pilgrims.
Related news: Making Hajj elderly friendly
Translator: Tri Meilani, Raka Adji
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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