Riyadh: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced on Friday that only Haj pilgrims will be allowed to perform Umrah between June 24 and July 19, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced on Twitter that registering to perform Umrah via the Eatmarna app will be available again on July 19.
A total of 172,562 pilgrims arrived in the Kingdom by Tuesday ahead of this year’s Haj season.
On Sunday, June 19, to mark the beginning of Haj 1444/2022, the authorities in Makkah raised the Kiswah (Ghilaf e Kaaba), the cloth that drapes the Kaaba by three metres, and covered the raised part with a two-metre-wide white cotton cloth (Ihram) on all four sides, an annual custom.
It is noteworthy that the Ministry of Haj and Umrah decided to issue Haj permits to only one million pilgrims this year from inside and outside the Kingdom, in continuation of the precautionary measures against the COVID-19 while easing these measures from the previous year.
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said that eligible pilgrims this year must be under 65, fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and present a negative PCR test result of a sample collected within 72 hours from departure to the kingdom.
Haj 2022 officially begins on the 8th of Dhul-Hijjah and ends on the 13th day of the same Islamic month. This year it falls between July 7 to 12.
