RIYADH (Ministry of Hajj and Umrah press service) — Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Saudi authorities have decided this year to refuse pilgrims coming from abroad, except for those already present in the kingdom.

Saudi Arabia ranks first among Arab countries for the number of coronavirus cases with more than 164,000 people infected. For several weeks now, the number of cases per day in the kingdom has not declined by less than three thousand. Since the beginning of the pandemic, 1346 people have died and more than 53,000 have not yet recovered.

The territory of Makkah, where the Muslim holy sites are located, is still closed to free movement due to the large number of people infected with the coronavirus.