Saudi Arabia on Saturday welcomed its first group of foreign Hajj pilgrims since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, which had led to strict limitations on the annual religious pilgrimage. The group, arriving from Indonesia, landed in the city of Medina and is expected to travel south to the holy city of Mecca in the coming weeks to prepare for the Hajj next month, according to state media reports.
“Today we received the first group of this year’s pilgrims from Indonesia, and flights will continue from Malaysia and India,” said Mohammed al-Bijawi of the Kingdom’s Ministry of Hajj, speaking to the state-run Al-Ekhbariya channel.
“We are delighted today to welcome the guests of God from outside the Kingdom, following a two-year pause due to the pandemic,” he added, describing Saudi Arabia as “fully prepared” to host them.
The Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, is a religious obligation that must be fulfilled at least once in a lifetime by all Muslims who are physically and financially able to do so. Typically among the largest religious gatherings in the world, around 2.5 million pilgrims participated in 2019.
However, in 2020, with the advent of the pandemic, Saudi authorities limited participation to just 1,000 pilgrims. In 2021, that figure was increased to 60,000 fully vaccinated Saudi citizens and residents selected via a lottery system. The exclusion of overseas pilgrims caused considerable disappointment among Muslims globally, many of whom save for years to undertake the journey.
In April, the Kingdom announced it would allow one million Muslims from both within and outside the country to perform the Hajj this year, scheduled for July.
The pilgrimage comprises a series of religious rites performed over five days in Mecca, Islam’s holiest city, and its surrounding areas in western Saudi Arabia. Hosting the Hajj is a source of immense prestige for the Saudi leadership, with custodianship of Islam’s most sacred sites considered a key element of their political legitimacy.
Before the pandemic, religious tourism—including Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages—was a significant source of revenue, generating approximately $12 billion annually. This year’s Hajj will be restricted to vaccinated pilgrims under the age of 65. International participants must obtain a Hajj visa and provide a negative Covid-19 PCR test result taken within 72 hours prior to departure.
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