Stirring from a seven-month hibernation, pilgrims returned to Mecca on Sunday after Saudi authorities partially lifted the Covid ban on performing umrah (pilgrimage to Islam’s two holiest sites undertaken at any time of year).
Pilgrimage will be revived in three phases, with Saudi Hajj Minister Mohammad Benten saying last week that 6,000 pilgrims per day or 30% capacity will be allowed in the first stage to perform the umrah “meticulously and within a specified period of time”.
It will open for Muslims from abroad from November 1. Last year, the Mecca drew 19 million umrah visitors.
Thousands of worshippers entered the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca in batches to perform the ritual of circling the sacred Kaaba, a stone structure that is the most sacred in Islam, while the officials made sure they maintained social distancing.
The revered Black Stone in the eastern corner of the Kaaba — which it is customary but not mandatory to touch during the pilgrimage — will be out of reach, while the Grand Mosque will be sterilised before and after each group of worshippers.
Each group of 20 or 25 pilgrims will be accompanied by a health worker and medical teams will be on the ground in case of an emergency. Religious pilgrimage generates $12 billion in revenues from worshippers’ lodging, transport, gifts, food and fees, according to official data. Economists have estimated Mecca’s hotel sector may lose at least 40% of pilgrimage-driven income this year.
