Riyadh: Saudi Arabia will soon resume the Umrah pilgrimage later this month after the current Hajj season ends, local media reported on Sunday.
The Saudi deputy minister of Hajj and Umrah, Abdul Fattah Al-Mashat said that Umrah will resume on the fifteenth of the current Islamic month of Zul-Hijjah, corresponding to July 23.
“In the beginning, the number of the Umrah pilgrims will be 20,000 [per day]. The number will increase gradually,” he told Saudi-owned television Al Arabiya.
According to the media reports, the issue is being addressed on the basis of the epidemiological situation in the holy city of Makkah and outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
In October 2020, Saudi Arabia resumed Umrah after a suspension of nearly seven months due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.
The first phase of the plan, which began on October 4, allowed 6,000 daily pilgrims from inside the kingdom to enter the Grand Mosque in Makkah.
The second went into effect on October 18, allowing about 40,000 worshipers and 10,000 pilgrims per day to enter the site.
Up to 20,000 pilgrims and 60,000 daily worshippers were allowed into the mosque according to the third phase that started in November. Ramadan is usually the peak of the Umrah season.
Last Ramadan, the authorities increased the capacity of the Grand Mosque to reach 50,000 pilgrims and 100,000 worshipers per day. Only people ‘immunized’ against COVID-19 were allowed to perform Umrah and visit the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah.