Adaptation to the Second Year of the Pandemic
Saudi Arabia\'s King Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud said in a televised address on Monday that the efforts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to limit the impact of the spread of COVID-19 had been successful.
MECCA, TUESDAY — The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has ensured that, as of its third day on Tuesday, this year’s haj pilgrimage has taken place in an orderly fashion. In general, health protocols for preventing the transmission of COVID-19 have been arranged in a number of locations, showing a massive adaptation to the pandemic in this year’s haj, using technology and the latest social measures.
Pilgrims threw jumarah (pebbles) at a wall symbolizing the devil upon arrival in the city of Mina on Tuesday. The Al-Arabiya media outlet reported that pilgrims, who normally collected stones from Muzdalifah themselves, had received a bag of sanitized pebbles as a virus prevention measure. Yellow markers were placed on the floor around the wall so that worshipers could maintain a distance of 2 meters. After the symbolic stoning, the congregation returned to the Grand Mosque for the final tawaf (circumambulation) around the Kaaba.