Saudi Arabia: 2020 Hajj allowed for nationalities residing in kingdom

CAIRO - 22 June 2020: Saudi Arabia announced that it has been decided that Islamic Pilgrimage (Hajj) for this year will be held whereby a very limited number of pilgrims from various nationalities who already reside in Saudi Arabia, would be able to perform it.

ستقام شعيرة الحج هذا العام بأعداد محدودة من جنسيات مختلقة من داخل المملكة العربية السعودية مع اجراءات احترازية دقيقة حفاظًا على امن وسلامة حجاج بيت الله الحرام، حمانا الله واياكم من هذه الجائحة وتقبل من الحجيج حجهم #حج_٢٠٢٠ pic.twitter.com/vmsBQtmCGF

— وزارة الحج والعمرة (@HajMinistry) June 22, 2020

The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah added that this decision has been taken to ensure safety for the pilgrims by taking all preventive measures and applying social distancing to protect human beings from the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Late February 2020, the Kingdom also suspended the pilgrimage for its own citizens and residents over coronavirus spread fears. Later, Saudi Arabia on Friday reopened Al-Haram Mosque in the holy city of Mecca and Al-Masjid Al-Nabawi in the holy city of Medina after temporarily closing them for one night for sterilization.

As yet, the number of COVID-19 cases that have been reported in Saudi Arabia reached 161,005 by adding 3,393 new cases on Monday, according to a statement from the Saudi Health Ministry.