Muslim pilgrims flock to Mecca for first post-pandemic hajj
SOCIETY - 01 July 2022 - 23:29
Thousands of pilgrims started arriving in the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia on July 1, among some one million Muslims expected to attend the 2022 hajj pilgrimage season after two years of major disruption caused by the COVID pandemic.
Wrapped in white robes, with some carrying umbrellas against the burning desert sun, hundreds performed the first ritual of the hajj, which involves walking in a circle around the Kaaba, the sacred building at the centre of Mecca's Grand Mosque, Reuters reports.
"Praise be God... It's impossible to describe my feelings right now," said Ahmed Sayed Mahmoud, an Egyptian pilgrim. "Being in the Grand Mosque and in the land of the two holy mosques makes me very happy."
Saudi Arabia, home to Islam's holiest sites in Mecca and Medina, allowed back foreign travellers this year to perform the hajj. Only a few thousand Saudi citizens and residents attended the annual pilgrimage in the last two years as COVID-19 wreaked havoc across the global economy and curtailed travel.
However, authorities have said only one million people can join the 2022 season, less than half of pre-pandemic levels, and access is restricted to pilgrims aged 18 to 65 who have been fully vaccinated or immunised against the virus and do not suffer from chronic diseases.
Security officers mixed with pilgrims inside the mosque. A web of surveillance cameras oversaw its surroundings and checkpoints controlled access to the city to help ensure an incident-free hajj, which has been marred in the past by deadly stampedes, fires and riots.
Over the years, the kingdom has spent billions of dollars on making one of the world's biggest religious gatherings more secure. hajj, a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it, is a major source of income for the government from worshippers’ lodging, transport, fees and gifts.
In 2019, the last year before the pandemic struck, some 2.6 million people performed the hajj, while around 19 million took part in the umrah, another form of pilgrimage to Mecca which - unlike the hajj - can be carried out at any time of the year.
An economic reform plan of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman aims to increase umrah and hajj capacity to 30 million pilgrims annually and to generate 50 billion riyals ($13.32 billion) of revenues by 2030.
Read also
13 August 2022 - 15:08State Committee: Azerbaijanis to return to Lachin city, villages of Zabukh, Sus VIDEO
Latest news
Azerbaijani servicemen test fire in Iran military contest PHOTO
16 August 2022 - 17:31
Azerbaijan detains 10 Sri Lanka citizens trying to cross to Iran
16 August 2022 - 17:24
Russia-Ukraine war may push over 20 million people into poverty: UN
16 August 2022 - 17:20
Can Europe receive Kazakh oil through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline? Analysis by TRT World
16 August 2022 - 17:16
Azerbaijani-descent Ukrainian army soldier killed in battle
16 August 2022 - 17:12
Zelenskyy, Macron discuss situation around Zaporizhzhya NPP
16 August 2022 - 17:04
European gas price surpasses $2,500 per 1,000 cubic metres Since early March
16 August 2022 - 16:52
Azerbaijan approves general plan of liberated lands
16 August 2022 - 16:40
Azerbaijan, Serbia mull expansion of tourism ties
16 August 2022 - 16:38
Russia preparing "massive missile attack" on Ukraine from Belarus - intelligence group
16 August 2022 - 16:35
Traffic suspended on Russian-Estonian border
16 August 2022 - 16:20
Uzbekistan outpaces Russia in car production in Apr-Jun
16 August 2022 - 16:14
Azerbaijani pavilion at International Army Games-2022 piques public interest
16 August 2022 - 16:05
Reuters: US carries out intercontinental ballistic missile test
16 August 2022 - 16:00
Lithuania to sign accord to acquire HIMARS missile systems
16 August 2022 - 15:55
Baku hosts meeting of Azerbaijan-Kyrgyzstan intergovernmental commission
16 August 2022 - 15:50
Kazakhstan confirms interest in buying Russia's stake in Eurasian Development Bank
16 August 2022 - 15:47
Chinese military ship docks at Sri Lanka port despite Indian concern
16 August 2022 - 15:30
Ankara, Kyiv discuss grain export from Ukraine
16 August 2022 - 15:24
Putin: West deliberately destroying European security system
16 August 2022 - 15:20
Bloomberg: Russia’s crude shipments to Asia tumble to post-invasion low
16 August 2022 - 15:15
Russian, Armenian defence chiefs discuss Karabakh ceasefire, cooperation
16 August 2022 - 15:13
Russia delivers S-400 air defence systems to India pursuant to schedule — official
16 August 2022 - 15:08
FBI chief accused of abusing official aircraft
16 August 2022 - 15:06
Ukraine receives 19 more bodies of fallen soldiers
16 August 2022 - 14:51
Azerbaijan questions Armenia's readiness for peace
16 August 2022 - 14:45
Azerbaijani servicemen join Sniper Frontier military contest in Iran
16 August 2022 - 14:33
Yerevan daily doubts cause of blast in Armenian mall
16 August 2022 - 14:30
Turkish special services kill terrorist leader in northern Syria
16 August 2022 - 14:15
"Azerbaijan and Israel have secured themselves against famine threat" Israeli expert Mikhail Finkel for Caliber.Az
16 August 2022 - 14:05
Ukraine: Operations in Crimea to continue until complete de-occupation
16 August 2022 - 14:05
Tourist influx from Azerbaijan doubles
16 August 2022 - 13:42
Azerbaijan discovers minefield planted by Armenian armed gangs in Lachin PHOTO
16 August 2022 - 13:24
Armenian Defence Ministry accused of failing to investigate non-combat deaths in army
16 August 2022 - 13:16
Official: Seven villages of Azerbaijan's Gazakh subject of delimitation
16 August 2022 - 12:58