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This year’s hajj pilgrimage will be limited to not more than 60,000 people, all of them from within the kingdom, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, said Saudi Arabia.
The borders of Saudi Arabia had been closed for months in the attempt to stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The kingdom has reported over 462,000 cases of the virus with 7,500 deaths since the start of the pandemic.
On Saturday, the kingdom made the announcement on it’s state-run Saudi Press Agency.
It cited the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah for making the decision.
Last year, as few as 1,000 people already residing in Saudi Arabia were selected to be a part of the hajj.
The hajj begins in mid-July.
The announcement by the kingdom came after it ran an incredibly pared-down pilgrimage last year due to the pandemic. Yet has still allowed a small number of the faithful devotees to take part in the annual ceremony.
This year’s hajj will be limited to those of the ages 18 to 65.
The ministry said that the ones taking part should be vaccinated.
Outbreaks of diseases have always been a concern surrounding the hajj. Pilgrims fought off a malaria outbreak in 632, a cholera outbreak in 1821 that killed estimated 20,000 people, and another cholera outbreak in 1865 that killed 15,000 before spreading worldwide.
The most recent concern Saudi Arabia has faced from a different coronavirus, a type that causes the Middle East Respiratory syndrome (MERS).
In the recent years Saudi Officials also instituted bans on pilgrims coming from countries affected by the ebola virus.