Saudi Arabia restricts Umrah pilgrimage for foreign travelers  

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has restricted the repetition of Umrah for foreign pilgrims, only allowing them to perform it three times during a 30-day stay amid concerns over rising COVID-19 cases.

According to local media reports quoting the Saudi Ministry for Hajj and Umrah, a recent decision restricting the repetition of Umrah or lesser pilgrimage to a 10-day gap also applies to overseas Muslims.

“Pilgrims arriving from abroad are allowed to stay in the country for 30 days and have to meet certain requirements,” the ministry said and added that the pilgrims have to be aged 12 and above, and show the status of immunization on the health app Tawakkalna.

Based on the 10-day interval for repeating Umrah, the overseas Muslims could undertake the rituals three times at most during their 30-day stay.

Saudi Arabia has previously announced to end institutional quarantine for foreign Umrah pilgrims who took two doses of Covid-19 vaccines approved in the Kingdom.

The announcement from the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah was carried by local news outlets saying that fully vaccinated pilgrims can now travel directly to the holy city of Makkah and start performing Umrah rites without the need for institutional quarantine.

“The period of stay in the Kingdom for pilgrims coming from abroad has been increased to 30 days,” the ministry said.