Hajj Performed in 2020

Islam’s annual hajj gets happening with just a bit of the pilgrims. Pilgrims visiting Mecca this year are physically distancing — standing apart and moving in small groups of 20 to limit contact and potential transmission of the coronavirus during the annual hajj in the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

As few as 1,000 people already be located in Saudi Arabia were selected to take part in the hajj this year. 

The pilgrims are compulsory to be between the ages of 20 and 50, with no fatal diseases and showing no symptoms of the virus. First priority is given to those who have not performed the hajj before.

Tent city

Tents normally house pilgrims near Mount Arafat in Mecca. This is the first time in modern history that Saudi Arabia has barred millions of international pilgrims.

Safety first

Pilgrims are tested for the coronavirus, given wristbands that connect to their phones and monitor their movement. They are required to quarantine at home and in their hotel rooms in Mecca ahead of start of the hajj. Pilgrims were also required to quarantine for a week after the hajj accomplishes on Sunday.

Physical distance markers

Physical distancing markers are seen where Muslim pilgrims cast pebbles at pillars representing Satan. The small stones, usually picked up by pilgrims along hajj routes, are now sterilized and bagged ahead of time.

Small groups

A small group of pilgrims wearing protective face masks arrive to circle the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site. 

Cleaning and polishing

Workers clean and polish the white marble floors surrounding the Kaaba. 

Zamzam well water

The Zamzam well, located in the Grand Mosque, has provided some 4,000 years of almost continuous water supply. This year, pilgrims are provided with water from the well that is carefully packed in plastic bottles. 

Praying at a distance

Pilgrims have been given their own prayer rugs and special attire to wear during the hajj that Saudi authorities say helps kill bacteria. They were also provided with umbrellas to shield them from the sun, towels, soaps, sanitizers and other essentials, and online sessions in different languages about what to think on the hajj and the guidelines in place.

A solitary moment

International media were not allowed to cover the hajj from Mecca this year. Instead, the Saudi government broadcast live footage from the Grand Mosque on Wednesday, showed limited numbers of pilgrims moving several feet apart, circling the cube-shaped Kaaba in the first rituals of the hajj.

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