40,000 Pakistani pilgrims missing after visiting Iran, Iraq, Syria: minister

Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf made a startling revelation that around 40,000 Pakistani pilgrims went missing after traveling to Iran, Iraq, and Syria, and their whereabouts remain unknown.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, the minister said that neither the Pakistani government nor the authorities in the host countries have any concrete records of where these pilgrims went.

He noted that Iran, Iraq, and Syria also raised concerns with Pakistan regarding the lack of organised tracking and record-keeping of visiting pilgrims.

In response, the government has now introduced a computerised pilgrim management system aimed at better organising and monitoring future religious trips.

Under the new framework, pilgrims will only be allowed to travel through registered Pilgrim Group Organisers (ZGOs).

More than 1,400 companies have submitted applications to be registered with the Ministry of Religious Affairs as official ZGOs.

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Out of these, 585 companies have cleared the security vetting process and have been instructed to complete online registration via the ministry’s website and submit required documentation by July 31.

Additionally, the ministry has issued a fresh advertisement inviting new applications from companies interested in working as registered ZGOs. The deadline for these applications is August 10.

The minister also disclosed that Iran and Iraq are developing a joint integrated system to regulate religious pilgrimages to holy sites, signaling the imminent end of the traditional caravan model.

Companies interested in continuing such operations are advised to register immediately.

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In response to a question, Minister Yousaf clarified that the Ministry of Religious Affairs is responsible not only for Hajj and Umrah pilgrims but also for those traveling to Iraq, Iran, and Syria.

While the plan to formalise pilgrim travel to these countries was approved in 2021, it saw little progress under the previous government, he added.