President of the Haramain, Sheikh Abdul Rehman Al Sudais received the Minister of Hajj and Umrah Dr. Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Benten in his office. The meeting according to Haramain Sharifain was to review plans to receive Pilgrims from October 4th, 2020.
From October 4th, the first phase of resuming Umrah will be initiated when local pilgrims can perform Umrah which must have been booked in advance through a special application called اعتمرنا IOS and android which was released today 27 September as kaabanews.com earlier reported.
It was gathered that during the first phase, Umrah pilgrims will be granted a 3 hour time to complete their rituals of Umrah i.e circumbulating the Ka’bah seven times, the performance of 2 rakah Sunnah behind the station of Ibrahim, running between the Mounts of Safa and Marwah seven times (Saee) and the shaving or shortening of hairs.
During the first phase, only 6,000 pilgrims would be allowed to perform their rituals per day.
Citizens and expatriates from within the Kingdom will be allowed to perform Umrah at a capacity of 30 percent.
In the second phase, citizens and expatriates inside the Kingdom will be allowed to perform Umrah, visit the Rawdah in the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, and pray in two Holy Mosques, starting from Oct. 18, with a 75 percent capacity limit that is equivalent of nearly 15,000 pilgrims per day and 40,000 worshippers per day following the health precautionary measures for the Grand Mosque, as well as 75 percent of the capacity in line with the health precautionary measures for the Rawdah in the Prophet’s Mosque.
In the third phase, pilgrims from abroad would be allowed to perform Umrah as of Nov. 1 with a full capacity of 20,000 pilgrims and 60,000 worshipers per day and it will continue until the official end of the coronavirus pandemic or the official announcement that the danger is over. The arrival of Umrah performers and visitors from outside the Kingdom shall be gradual from the countries that are free from health risks related to the coronavirus pandemic, the source added.
The fourth phase will allow the performance of Umrah, visit, and prayers by citizens and expatriates from inside and outside the Kingdom, at 100 percent of the normal capacity of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque, when the competent authority decides that the risks of the pandemic have disappeared.
