Saudi Arabia says it will allow one million people from both inside and outside the kingdom to perform the Hajj this year compared with only a few thousand local pilgrims over the past two years.
The kingdom’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, Islam’s holiest site, would only be allowed for people who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and are under the age of 65.
The ministry in a statement says Pilgrims travelling from abroad will also need to have a negative PCR test taken no more than 72 hours before their departure for Saudi Arabia.