RIYADH – The new Kiswa (the black cloth covering the Holy Ka`bah) for the new Hajj season is ready, according to the Committee for Inspecting the Holy Kaaba Cloth.

The embroidered black and gold cloth is due to cover the holy site on the morning of the day of Arafah (predicted to be on the 20th of August), Al-Arabiya reported.

Ahmad bin Mohammed Al-Mansouri, the director-general of the King Abdul Aziz Complex for the Kaaba, said that the general presidency has been following the plan for this year’s 2018 Hajj season and carried out the usual routine of changing the Kaaba’s ‘Kiswa’.

He added that a team of specialists and technicians worked with caution to assure the cleanliness and safety of the ‘Kiswa’.

The ‘Kiswa’ is woven from pure silk and embellished by gold-plated thread illustrating verses from the Quran. It is classified as a work of Islamic art produced by top-skilled craftsmen.

The covering of the Kaaba signifies the start of the Hajj season.

Muslims from around the world pour into Makkah every year to perform hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam.

Hajj consists of several rituals, which are meant to symbolize the essential concepts of the Islamic faith, and to commemorate the trials of Prophet Abraham and his family, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon them.

Every able-bodied adult Muslim who can financially afford the trip must perform hajj at least once in a lifetime.

Hajj is officially expected to fall this year between Sunday, 19th of August 2018 and will continue till Friday, 24th of August 2018.

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