(Riyadh) Saudi Arabia announced on Saturday that its security forces had turned back more than 300,000 unregistered pilgrims to Mecca, a week before the start of the annual pilgrimage to the holy city.
Crowd management at this large gathering has proven perilous in the past, notably in 2015, when a stampede left around 2,300 dead.
Among those pushed back in recent days from Mecca are 153,998 foreigners who obtained tourist visas instead of the authorizations granted by the kingdom to different countries on the basis of quotas, said the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA). ).
The Saudi authorities also intercepted 171,587 residents in the kingdom, but who did not have authorizations for the Hajj.
Last year, more than 1.8 million Muslims took part in the hajj, according to official figures.
Since last Saturday, more than 1.3 million registered pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia for the hajj, according to authorities.
The hajj which begins on June 14 is one of the five pillars of Islam and must be undertaken at least once by all Muslims who can afford it.
Saudi Arabia is home to Islam’s holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina, and the Gulf kingdom earns billions of dollars each year from the hajj and pilgrimages, known as Umrah, undertaken in other times of the year.
Pilgrimages also confer prestige on the Saudi monarch whose official title includes that of “Guardian of the Two Holy Mosques” of Mecca and Medina.