REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Minister of Religious Affairs Yaqut Cholil Qoumas has urged his ranks to work in close coordination with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia regarding the search for one missing hajj pilgrim. The Indonesian pilgrim went missing during the 2023 hajj season.
“I have asked the Director General (of Hajj and Umrah Organization) to continue coordinating with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, so that search is still continued,” Yaqut said in Yogyakarta on Monday.
According to him, the search continued indefinitely until it obtained clues or signs related to the condition of the missing pilgrim. “The signs are many, whether indeed these signs point to this pilgrim having disappeared altogether or died or how is there,” Yaqut said.
He guaranteed that his ranks monitor the continued search. “They continue to work and I get reports periodically,” he added.
In the 2023 hajj season, the Ministry of Religious Affairs recorded 774 hajj participants dying during the hajj service. “The remaining 30 died in the homeland,” he said.
As previously reported, there were three Indonesian hajj pilgrims who went missing during the peak of the hajj in Arafat, Muzdalifah, and Mina (Armuzna). The three are Idun Rohim Zen (87) from the Palembang Embarkation Cluster 20 (PLM 20), Suharja Wardi Ardi (69) from the Kertajati Embarkation Cluster 10, and Niron Sunar Suna (77) from the Surabaya Embarkation Cluster 65 (SUB 65).
Niron Sunar Suna was found dead in An Nur Hospital. Later, Suharja Wardi Ardi was also found dead at Mu'aisyim Hospital, Mina, Mecca. Currently, there is still one person who is still wanted, namely Idun Rohim Zen, who was registered at the Palembang Embarkation Cluster 20.