Minister of Hajj: New Embarkation Opening Must Meet Two Conditions

Minister of Hajj and Umrah Mochamad Irfan Yusuf has expressed support for the opening of a hajj embarkation point in Sorong, Papua Barat Daya, to facilitate services for prospective pilgrims, provided two key conditions are met: sufficient pilgrim numbers and infrastructure readiness. “In principle, we want to make things easier for hajj pilgrims. But to open a new embarkation point, two things must be fulfilled, namely the number of pilgrims and the readiness of the airport,” said Minister Irfan during an evaluation meeting for the 1447 Hijriah/2026 Hajj implementation in Sorong on Friday. The Minister explained that a new embarkation point, or an intermediate embarkation point, can be opened if the number of prospective pilgrims in the area reaches approximately 4,000 people. Additionally, the airport to be used must be capable of supporting wide-body aircraft operations for hajj flights. If these two requirements are met, the government is prepared to consider opening an embarkation point in Sorong as part of efforts to improve services for pilgrims in the Papua region. “If all parties are ready, there is certainly a possibility of opening an intermediate embarkation point. However, everything must go through thorough coordination,” said Minister Irfan. The Minister is committed to improving the quality of hajj implementation, including expanding departure access for pilgrims from the regions, as long as all technical, administrative, and operational requirements are fulfilled.