All the 60,000 people selected to perform Hajj this year must have two doses of a coronavirus vaccine, Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said on Sunday, Arab News reported.

“When the Hajj permit is issued after completing all the procedures, the accepted person who has not completed their vaccination course with two doses must visit one of the Corona vaccine centers, and they will receive a text message informing them,” the ministry said on Twitter.

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Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said it received 558,270 applications by the deadline on Wednesday. More than 450,000 people applied within 24 hours of applications opening on June 13.

The ministry said 41 per cent of the applications were from women, who this year will be allowed to perform the pilgrimage in groups without a male guardian.

The ministry urged people with permits to get vaccinated, assuring them that no appointment was needed.

Pilgrims should either be fully vaccinated, have had one dose at least 14 days before Hajj, or be vaccinated after recovering from a coronavirus infection.

More than 17.2 million vaccine doses have been administered in Saudi Arabia so far. A Ministry of Health spokesman has said that nobody had died from COVID-19 after completing the vaccination course.

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Hajj 1442

Earlier this month, Saudi authorities announced hajj restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Kingdom said no foreign pilgrims would be allowed to perform Hajj this year, setting a maximum of 60,000 pilgrims.

Hajj ceremonies symbolize the essential concepts of the Islamic faith. It commemorates the trials of Prophet Abraham and his family.

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

Before the pandemic, Makkah used to see millions of Muslims from around the world pouring in to perform Hajj.