MECCA (Kayhan intl.) – The annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca - has begun, but under dramatically different circumstances due to the coronavirus outbreak.
One of the five pillars of Islam, the Hajj is required for all Muslims who are physically or financially capable of undertaking it at least once in their lifetime and is usually one of the world’s largest religious gatherings.
But this year, only up to 10,000 people already residing in Saudi Arabia will participate in the five-day pilgrimage, a tiny fraction of the 2.5 million pilgrims from around the world that attended last year.
"There are no security-related concerns in this pilgrimage, but [downsizing] is to protect pilgrims from the danger of the pandemic,” said Khalid bin Qarar Al-Harbi, Saudi Arabia’s director of public security.
Pilgrims will be required to wear masks and observe physical distancing during a series of religious rites that are completed over five days in the holy city of Mecca and its surroundings in western Saudi Arabia.
Some 70 percent of the pilgrims are foreigners residing in the kingdom, and the rest are Saudi citizens, authorities said.
According to the Saudi Hajj Ministry, foreigners residing in the kingdom from around 160 countries competed in an online selection process to attend the pilgrimage.
Every year before the pandemic, more than two million people attend the holy sites in the cities of Mecca and Medina during the pilgrimage.
Those allowed to attend this year’s Hajj need to be tested for the coronavirus disease before arriving in Mecca. They will also have to quarantine after the pilgrimage.
According to a Hajj Ministry program document, worshipers will be provided with elaborate amenity kits that include sterilized pebbles for a stoning ritual, disinfectants, masks, a prayer rug, and the ihram, a seamless white garment worn by pilgrims.
"Hajj in 2020 is a truly exceptional pilgrimage by all measures,” said the Saudi Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Muhammad Saleh bin Taher Benten.
Saudi Arabia has one of the largest coronavirus outbreaks in the Middle East, with almost 270,000 confirmed cases and 2,700 deaths.
One of the five pillars of Islam, the Hajj is required for all Muslims who are physically or financially capable of undertaking it at least once in their lifetime and is usually one of the world’s largest religious gatherings.
But this year, only up to 10,000 people already residing in Saudi Arabia will participate in the five-day pilgrimage, a tiny fraction of the 2.5 million pilgrims from around the world that attended last year.
"There are no security-related concerns in this pilgrimage, but [downsizing] is to protect pilgrims from the danger of the pandemic,” said Khalid bin Qarar Al-Harbi, Saudi Arabia’s director of public security.
Pilgrims will be required to wear masks and observe physical distancing during a series of religious rites that are completed over five days in the holy city of Mecca and its surroundings in western Saudi Arabia.
Some 70 percent of the pilgrims are foreigners residing in the kingdom, and the rest are Saudi citizens, authorities said.
According to the Saudi Hajj Ministry, foreigners residing in the kingdom from around 160 countries competed in an online selection process to attend the pilgrimage.
Every year before the pandemic, more than two million people attend the holy sites in the cities of Mecca and Medina during the pilgrimage.
Those allowed to attend this year’s Hajj need to be tested for the coronavirus disease before arriving in Mecca. They will also have to quarantine after the pilgrimage.
According to a Hajj Ministry program document, worshipers will be provided with elaborate amenity kits that include sterilized pebbles for a stoning ritual, disinfectants, masks, a prayer rug, and the ihram, a seamless white garment worn by pilgrims.
"Hajj in 2020 is a truly exceptional pilgrimage by all measures,” said the Saudi Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Muhammad Saleh bin Taher Benten.
Saudi Arabia has one of the largest coronavirus outbreaks in the Middle East, with almost 270,000 confirmed cases and 2,700 deaths.
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