Nawaz reaches Saudi Arabia today for Umrah

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN) supremo Nawaz Sharif is reaching Saudi Arabia from London on Tuesday today for performing Umrah, while party chief organiser Maryam Nawaz will reach the holy land hours before her father’s landing in Jeddah.

She will reach Jeddah in the wee hours of Tuesday, according to the party sources. Nawaz Sharif, who had been spending the last 10 days of Ramazan in Makkah and Madina for years in the past, is visiting the holy land after six years.

Sources told The News Nawaz Sharif had initially planned to stay in the Kingdom till the 26th of this month, but now Hussain Nawaz and his family had requested him to prolong his stay in Jeddah at his residence. Hussain has a business in Saudi Arabia, and his Arab wife, has house in Jeddah.

Sources said Nawaz Sharif could extend his stay in Jeddah till mid-May. He would have a stopover for two days in Jeddah before going to Makkah to perform Umrah. He has planned to offer his first Juma prayers at Khana Ka’aba and Jumatul Wida at Masjad-e-Nabvi in Madina.

According to sources, Nawaz Sharif would have meeting with the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdul Aziz in Jeddah, who is moving to coast city on Red Sea this week. Sources indicated that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar had delayed their departure for Saudi Arabia due to political situation in the country. They could go to the Kingdom for a day or two early next week on the day when Eidul-Fitar would be observed in Saudi Arabia.