Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Some 580 citizens of Uzbekistan, who were performing the Umrah pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia through illegal travel agencies, were returned to their homeland on a chartered flight. This was reported on the Uzbekistan 24 TV channel.

According to official data, 34 criminal cases were initiated in the first three months of the current year against travel agencies that organized pilgrimage trips without the necessary licenses. As a result, 46 individuals were held accountable, and the activities of 53 companies providing tourism services were temporarily suspended.

As noted by Zayniddin Eshonkulov, Deputy Chairman of the Muslim Board of Uzbekistan, due to the failure of the travel agencies to fulfill their obligations, many pilgrims found themselves in a very difficult situation — they were left without food and shelter for an extended period.

According to the affected pilgrims, the problems started right at the airport. All the pilgrims were placed in one room, the promised trip to Medina never took place, and there was no representative from the organizers at the location.