Amid strict health measures, Hajj pilgrims flocked to Mount Arafat early Monday morning after converging in Mina for Tarwiyah, the eighth day of Dul Hijjah, Arab News reported.
At the mosque of Namirah, they will perform combined and shortened Dhuhr and Asr prayers and attend the Hajj sermon, following the steps of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who delivered his last sermon on the ninth of the same month 10 years after he migrated from Makkah to Madinah.
After sunset, Hajj pilgrims will spend the night in Muzdalifah. Upon their arrival in the holy site, they will perform the Maghrib prayer, followed by a shortened Isha prayer.
Only 60,000 people, all citizens or residents of Saudi Arabia, have been selected to take part in this year’s hajj, while foreign pilgrims have been barred.
For the second consecutive year, the Hajj has been limited to pilgrims from inside Saudi Arabia. The decision was taken to protect them against the coronavirus pandemic.
The health authority has inoculated more than 22 million of Saudi Arabia’s 35 million citizens and residents. All those selected to partake in this year’s Hajj have been vaccinated.
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