2 years ago

Saudi Arabia expects ‘exceptional, safe’ Hajj pilgrimage

With limits lifted three years after the Covid-19 pandemic, the kingdom anticipates welcoming more than 2 million Muslim pilgrims to journey to the holy Kaaba.

Reuters Archive

The Hajj, the pilgrimage to Islam's holiest site Kaaba in Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam. / Photo: Reuters Archive

Saudi Arabia has said it expects an “exceptional” and “safe” Hajj pilgrimage this year.

“All preparations bode well. We are optimistic about this Hajj season,” Sheikh Abdul Rahman al Sudais, head of the General Presidency for the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, told the state-run Al Ekhbariya television channel on Saturday.

He added this year’s Hajj pilgrimage will be “exceptional, distinguished and safe.”

The oil-rich kingdom expects to receive over two million Muslim pilgrims this year.

Saudi Arabia held downsized Hajj in the last three years due to restrictions imposed to stem the outbreak of Covid-19, but announced 5 months ago that it will no longer impose limits on the number of pilgrims.

In 2022, over 899,999 Muslim pilgrims visited Saudi Arabia to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, according to official figures.

In 2021, the kingdom welcomed up to 60,000 pilgrims from inside Saudi Arabia amid Covid-19 restrictions, while only 10,000 performed the ritual in 2020.

The Hajj, the pilgrimage to Islam's holiest site Kaaba in Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam. Muslims are required to perform it at least once in their life if they have the means to do so.