The annual pilgrimage to the Holy places for Muslims in Saudi Arabia-the Hajj-this year can be performed by about ten thousand people, in contrast to at least 2.5 million people who usually come for the Hajj, the Minister for Hajj and Umrah of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Saleh said on Tuesday at a press conference.
"The number of pilgrims this year will be very limited, and may not exceed ten thousand. This will only be an internal Hajj, and no exceptions will be made for pilgrims from abroad," he said.
According to him, the pilgrims will be selected together with foreign diplomatic missions, all of them will pass tests for the coronavirus, and after the Hajj they will have to be quarantined for 14 days. Teams of doctors will monitor their health during the Hajj, and hospitals will be deployed in places of pilgrimage.
On Monday, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced that due to precautions related to the coronavirus, this year's Hajj, which will be held from July 28 to August 2, will be attended only by foreign Muslims who are already in the country, and pilgrims from abroad will not be able to come to the Hajj. At the same time, people over 65 years old and those with chronic diseases will also not be able to visit the Holy places this year.
The territory of Mecca, where the Holy places for Muslims are located, is still closed to free movement due to the large number of people infected with the coronavirus.
Saudi Arabia is at the first place among Arab countries in the number of cases of the coronavirus with more than 161 thousand infected. For several weeks, the number of cases per day in the Kingdom has not decreased less than three thousand. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 1,307 people died and more than 105,000 recovered.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Konevi / pixabay
Based on materials from RIA Novosti