ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - The first batch of Hajj pilgrims from Iraq arrived back in Baghdad on Wednesday afternoon, with more pilgrims set to arrive in the coming days, Iraq’s transport ministry said. 

"Iraqi Airways announces the arrival of its first flight transporting pilgrims from Taif International Airport to Baghdad International Airport. It begins the return flights for Iraqi pilgrims,” read a statement by the ministry. 

The statement added that between two to six flights will be operated daily from Saudi Arabia to Iraq, with the campaign set to come to an end on June 24. 

To ensure the comfort of the pilgrims, the charter flights will be done using Boeing 777 Dreamliner aircraft. 

Of nearly 40,000 people who went on Hajj from Iraq this year, over 5,136 of them were from the Kurdistan Region.

Niyaz Naqishbandi, in charge of the Kurdistan Region’s Hajj and Umrah already confirmed to The New Region that the return of pilgrims from the Kurdistan Region will begin on July 14 by land and on charter flights.

Relevant authorities in Baghdad and Erbil have yet to publish any official figures regarding any deaths among pilgrims while performing Hajj.

Thirteen pilgrims from the Kurdistan Region alone died while performing the Hajj pilgrimage last year.