Muslim pilgrims who will partake in this year’s limited Hajj amid the coronavirus pandemic have started home isolation, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said on Sunday.
“According to the health protocol approved for Hajj, pilgrims who met the health requirements and conditions for this year’s Hajj began today the 7-day home isolation procedures,” the ministry said on Twitter.
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Saudi Arabia had announced on June 22 that it will allow a “limited” number of people to perform Hajj this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and that those individuals will be of different nationalities but already residing in the Kingdom.
Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and a must for able-bodied Muslims at least once in their lifetime. Approximately, 2.5 million pilgrims typically visit the holiest sites of Islam in Mecca and Medina for the week-long Hajj.
Read: Coronavirus: Saudi Arabia sets COVID-19 protocols, restrictions for limited Hajj