Egyptian Mohammed Alatar, 31, tries on Ihram clothing, simple garments worn by pilgrims performing Hajj, at a store in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Men embroider Islamic calligraphy to prepare a drape, or Kiswa, that covers the Kaaba, the cube-shaped structure at the heart of the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.
A woman fields calls at the National Centre for Security Operations in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, days before the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
The centre is responsible for security patrols, road safety, traffic and civil defence during Hajj.
A camp is set up for pilgrims in Mina, near Mecca, ahead of this year's pilgrimage.
A major disinfection drive is under way in Mecca, in preparation for this year's Hajj.
A Bengali worker cleans the streets in Mina.
Saudi Arabian police officer Abeer Abdullah on guard during a press conference featuring the head of the Hajj security forces in Mecca. The annual pilgrimage used to draw more than 2 million people but for the second straight year it is curtailed by the coronavirus with only vaccinated people in Saudi Arabia allowed to participate.
Saudi security staff watch smart screens, which identify passing pilgrim's authorisation to participate in Hajj, at al Zaidy reception centre in Mecca.
A camp for pilgrims is set up in Mina, near Mecca. The Hajj pilgrimage is required of every Muslim who can afford it and is physically able to make it, at least once in a lifetime.
.Workers set up accommodation for pilgrims in Mina.
A police vehicle patrols the tented camp in Mina before the Hajj pilgrimage, which is due to start on Saturday and run until July 22 but for limited numbers.
A smart robot used for the first time at the Grand Mosque in Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca, supplying worshippers with bottles of Zamzam water to reduce direct contact with staff as a measure to prevent Covid-19 infections spreading during the yearly Hajj pilgrimage.
From robots to smart screens and sanitisation, preparations for Hajj begin – in pictures
