circumambulate (Tawaf) the Kaaba in the Grand Mosque complex in the
holy city of Mecca, on October 4, 2020, as authorities partially
resume the year-round Umrah for a limited number of pilgrims amid
extensive health precautions after a seven-month coronavirus
hiatus. AFP
Mask-clad Muslims circled Islam’s holiest site along
socially distanced paths on Sunday, as Saudi authorities partially
resumed the year-round umrah pilgrimage amid extensive health
precautions after seven-month coronavirus hiatus.
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 cubic structure towards which Muslims around the
world pray.
The umrah, the pilgrimage that can be undertaken at any time,
usually attracts millions of Muslims from across the globe each
year but it was suspended in March due to the coronavirus
pandemic.
It will be revived in three phases, with Saudi Hajj
Minister Mohammad Benten saying last week that 6,000 pilgrims
per day will be allowed in the first stage to perform the umrah
“meticulously and within a specified period of time”.
A raft of precautions have been adopted to ward off any
outbreaks during the umrah, according to state media.
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.
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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, Benten said.
Under 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 worshippers, allowed to
perform prayers at the mosque.
Visitors from abroad will be permitted in the third stage from
November 1, when capacity will be raised to 20,000 and 60,000,
respectively.
The decision to resume the pilgrimage was in response to the
“aspirations of Muslims home and abroad” to perform the ritual and
visit the holy sites, the interior ministry said last month.
It added that the umrah would be allowed to return to full
capacity once the threat of the pandemic has abated.
Until then, the health ministry will vet countries from which
pilgrims are allowed to enter based on the health risks.
Saudi Arabia suspended the umrah in March and scaled back the
annual hajj over fears that the coronavirus could spread to Islam’s
holiest cities.
The hajj went ahead in late July, on the smallest scale in
modern history, with only up to 10,000 Muslims allowed to take part
— a far cry from the 2.5 million who participated last year.
AFP
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