Baggage belonging to departing pilgrims unloaded at the Jeddah airport. Luggage handling is one of the key tasks assigned to the United Agents Office. — SG file photo Ahmad Abdullah Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – The United Agents Office has adopted a new strategy to prevent pilgrims from overstaying their Haj visas. The office said it was comparing names on lists of pilgrims leaving the country with lists of names in the arrival phase with the cooperation of various authorities at 16 different exit points from the Kingdom, including airports, seaports and border posts. Saleh Abu Zeid of the United Agents Office in Madinah said the office is the authority responsible for receiving and seeing off pilgrims at airports and seaports as well as border points. He said Prince Muhammad Bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah is playing an important role in reducing pressure on King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah during the departure stage for pilgrims. He said the branch office in Madinah is similar to the head office in Jeddah. Its function is to decrease the waiting period for pilgrims, prevent crowding and facilitate their procedures to enable them to return to their countries. Muhammad Noor Turki, in charge of the land crossing points in the office, said the employees oversee the final stages for pilgrims' departure. They also ensure that all the service charges have been paid to Tawafa establishments. They make sure the pilgrims' luggage has been loaded and departure procedures completed in the same speed as they were received. He said the office makes arrangements for transporting the pilgrims' luggage when they reach the border posts. The office also receives the passports from them so as to complete their travel procedures and register the required data. These include the pilgrim's name, nationality, passport number, embarkation point, the means of transport, the port of entry, his Tawafa establishment, date of arrival and date of departure. All these are carried out in coordination with the Passport Department.
