Saudi Arabia suspended the umra in March over fear of the spread of the coronavirus. (File)
Mecca:
Mask-clad Muslims surrounded Islam’s holiest site along socially remote roads on Sunday, as Saudi authorities partially resumed the year-round Umrah pilgrimage amid extended health precautions after a seven-month hiatus from the coronavirus.
Thousands of worshipers have entered the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca in batches to perform the ritual of going around the sacred Kaaba, a cubic structure that Muslims around the world pray to.
The umra, the pilgrimage that can be undertaken at any time, typically attracts millions of Muslims from around the world each year but was suspended in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.
It will be relaunched in three phases, with Saudi Hajj Minister Mohammad Benten saying last week that 6,000 pilgrims a day will be allowed in the first stage to perform Umrah “meticulously and within a specified period of time.”
A series of precautions were taken to avoid any epidemic during the umra, state media reported.
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 sterilized before and after each group of worshipers.
Each group of 20 or 25 pilgrims will be accompanied by a health worker and medical teams will be on the ground in the event of an emergency, Benten said.
As part of the second stage from October 18, the number of Umrah pilgrims will be increased to 15,000 per day, with a maximum of 40,000 people, including pilgrims and other devotees, allowed to pray to the mosque.
Visitors from abroad will be allowed in the third stage from November 1, when the capacity will be increased to 20,000 and 60,000, respectively.
The decision to resume the pilgrimage was in response to “aspirations of Muslims at home and abroad” to perform the ritual and visit holy sites, the Interior Ministry said last month.
He added that Umrah would be allowed to return to full capacity once the threat of the pandemic subsides.
Until then, the Department of Health will review the countries from which pilgrims are allowed to enter based on health risks.
Saudi Arabia suspended the umra in March and reduced the annual hajj over fears the coronavirus could spread to Islam’s holiest cities.
The hajj took place at the end of July, on the smallest scale in modern history, with only 10,000 Muslims allowed to participate – a far cry from the 2.5 million who attended last year. .
(This story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
