A PIETERMARITZBURG man said his sister and 127 other South Africans who attended the Hajj pilgrimage were on Monday still stranded in Istanbul, Turkey after their airline tickets were botched up six days ago. Imtiaz Sooliman said after attending pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia the group arrived in Turkey to catch a connecting flight to South Africa. He said they were left stranded after their names did not appear on the Turkish Airlines passenger list. ”The pilgrims have tickets with confirmation but the computer does not show that they are listed,” he said. He said 19 pilgrims paid $700 (about R7 900) to have their flights re-routed through London while others managed to acquire accommodation near the airport. ”Some of those stranded have even used their life savings to go to Hajj and to think something like this had to happen,” Sooliman said. – Sapa
Monday March 4, 2002