Hajj 2021: pilgrims gather at Mount Arafat while socially distancing

Worshippers follow Covid-19 safety rules to prevent the spread of coronavirus

Pilgrims take a selfie after the symbolic stoning ritual during the Hajj in Mina, near Saudi Arabia's holy city of Makkah. AP

A woman pilgrim prays after the stoning ritual. AP

Pilgrims cast stones at a pillar representing the devil, one of several rituals that form part of the annual Hajj. Reuters

A pilgrim flings a stone at a pillar symbolising Satan. Reuters

An official in Mina, near Makkah, directs a pilgrim during the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

Coronavirus hit the Hajj for a second year running. An event that annually attracts about 2. 5 million Muslims from around the world this year is unrecognisable in scale with strict health restrictions in place.

Pilgrims at prayer after participating in the symbolic stoning of the devil during the Hajj pilgrimage in Mina, Saudi Arabia.

A pilgrim during prayer after the stone-throwing ritual.

Pilgrims cast stones in a ritual stoning of Satan during Hajj.

Pilgrims pray after the stone-throwing ritual in Mina, Saudi Arabia.

A Hajj pilgrim in Mina, near Makkah, casts a stone at a pillar representing Satan.

Pilgrims cast stones at a pillar symbolising Satan during the annual Hajj.

A pilgrim prays after throwing stones at a pillar symbolising Satan.

A worker distributes free water from the holy well of Zamzam to pilgrims.

A Saudi policewoman, Samar, stands in front of the Kaaba.

A pilgrim casts stones at a pillar symbolising Satan.

Pilgrims throw stones at pillars symbolising Satan during Hajj in Mina, near Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

Pilgrims have their heads shaved on the second day of Eid Al Adha after throwing stones at a pillar symbolising Satan.

Pilgrims, keeping social distancing and wearing protective masks, cast stones at pillars symbolising Satan.

Pilgrims pray on top of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, near Makkah.

Pilgrims gather on the plain of Arafat during Hajj.

A pilgrim prays in front of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the plain of Arafat, near Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

Pilgrims gather around Mount Arafat, also known as Jabal Al Rahma, or the Mountain of Mercy.

Muslim pilgrims at Mount Arafat.

Vaccinated pilgrims performing Hajj.

Pilgrims shelter from the sun under an umbrella.

Participants remained socially distanced and wore masks as the coronavirus took its toll on the Hajj for a second year running.

Officials replace the covering cloth of the Kaaba.

Aerial view of the Mina area during the annual Hajj pilgrimage, in the holy city of Makkah.

The Kaaba is covered with the Kiswa cloth.

Another view of the Mina area.

Pilgrims must be under 65 and without a chronic disease.

Rules for the 2021 Hajj allow for a maximum of 60,000 citizens and residents Saudi Arabia.

Pilgrims must show proof of Covid-19 vaccination to be allowed entry.

It is the second consecutive year that numbers at Hajj are limited due to pandemic.

Muslim pilgrims, wearing protective face masks, circle the Kaaba.

Coronavirus precautions are taken across the site.

Pilgrims arrive at their tented camp in Mina, near the Muslim holy city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

Time for prayer and reflection.

For some worshippers, this year’s Hajj is a strange experience because it has been scaled down to such an extent.

A pilgrim recites the Quran.

Saudi pilgrim Irak al Dofairy, 65, reads the Quran on his mobile phone at a camp in Mina.

A pilgrim sits cross-legged.

.Mina sits in a narrow valley surrounded by rocky mountains.

Visitors partake in the rituals of the great pilgrimage.

Walking around the Kaaba, Islam's holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque.

Back at the camp.

The annual Hajj pilgrimage, one of the five pillars of Islam, started with only 60,000 vaccinated Saudi citizens and residents allowed to take part this year because of the pandemic.

Pilgrims pour into Makkah for first Hajj rituals amid strict health measures.

A pilgrim takes a selfie at the Grand Mosque as he wears a mask and stands on social distancing signs.

A total of 60,000 assembled in Mina on Sunday before moving to Arafat on Monday.

Muslim pilgrims pray in front of the Kaaba.

A robot sterilises an area of the Grand Mosque before Hajj.

The pilgrimage to Makkah is required once in a lifetime of every Muslim who can afford it and is physically able to make it.

Muslim pilgrims pray at the Grand Mosque.

Workers disinfect the grounds.

Muslim pilgrims walk around the cubic building of the Kaaba.

A Muslim pilgrim walks past a sign reminding Hajj participants of social distancing.

A pilgrims arrives to atend the Hajj season in Makkah.

Hajj authorities have been disinfecting the Grand Mosque around the clock to ensure pilgrims' safety.

The pilgrimage remains a deeply personal experience for many, despite the downsizing for the second year running.

A person can perform Hajj on behalf of someone who has died or is unable to come to Makkah but only if they have already performed the pilgrimage for themselves.

A man hands a bottle of water to a pilgrim at the Grand Mosque.

The annual ritual is an important part of Islam.

Pilgrims are dotted around the site.

Saudi troops stand guard as the first pilgrims arrive at the Kaaba, Islam's holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque.

A person takes a video as pilgrims perform Tawaf, the rite of circumambulating the Kaaba.

Pilgrims pray in the evening near the Kaaba.

A Saudi security officer watches as pilgrims circumambulate the Kaaba

Follow the latest updates on Hajj 2021 here

Amid Covid-19 health restrictions surrounding this year's Hajj in Saudi Arabia, about 60,000 pilgrims gathered at Mount Arafat, known as the Mount of Mercy, on Monday.

The usual scene of hundreds of thousands of men and women on the mountain will not be repeated this year, as pilgrim numbers have been reduced to a fraction of their normal size.

Social distancing and other coronavirus precautions have been put in place by the Saudi authorities to ensure the pilgrimage – one of Islam's five pillars – is performed safely.

Millions of Muslims worldwide also commemorate Arafat day by fasting.

Early on Monday, the second day of the five-day pilgrimage, Saudi coronavirus restrictions prevented worshippers from touching Mount Arafat.

Muslim pilgrims gather around Mount Arafat during the Hajj pilgrimage amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Instead, they stood behind barriers and sat metres apart in air-conditioned tents, reciting prayers and reading verses of the Quran. Later in the day, some were allowed the scale the hill.

The Hajj is one of Islam’s most important requirements and is to be performed once in a Muslim's lifetime. It follows a route the Prophet Mohammed walked nearly 1,400 years ago and is believed to ultimately trace the footsteps of the Prophets Ibrahim and Ismail.

"The day of Arafat is crucial for Muslims and especially for pilgrims during Hajj," said Samira, a Saudi citizen. "This is the day we hope Allah forgives us all our sins. This is the day our Prophet gave his last sermon on Mount Arafat and Allah completed our religion.

"Just standing on the same ground where a verse from the Quran was revealed to our beloved Prophet makes my body shake. I am filled with gratitude."

Only a lucky vaccinated few, who are between the ages of 18 and 65 and reside in Saudi Arabia, were eligible to perform the pilgrimage this year. Pilgrims The National spoke to marvelled at their luck.

"To be one of only 60,000 doing Hajj ... I feel like I am part of a [privileged] group that was able to reach this place," said Saudi citizen Baref Siraj, 58.

Another Saudi pilgrim, Umm Omar, 62, said Monday was the best day of her life.

"Today I feel like I have achieved the purpose I was sent for and I am able to complete my religion. This is the most gratifying experience of my life," she said.

Volunteers helping the event to run smoothly also spoke about their enthusiasm at being involved.

“Hajj is about embracing everyone for who they are, with no issues of rank or authority," said Adnan, a Hajj volunteer.

“We sleep together, eat together and wear the same clothes."

For afternoon prayers, pilgrims attended Namirah Mosque where they heard a sermon about kindness before dhuhr and asr prayers began.

After an initially drizzly morning, temperatures rose in the afternoon.

“My phone died due to the heat; that's when I knew it was time to go in the shade and get some rest," said a Saudi pilgrim, who did not want to be identified.

After prayers, many headed back towards Arafat, where they rested until sunset.

Also marking this occasion were the sons of a veteran moutawef or pilgrimage guide, who took up the mantle after their father died in August.

Majed Tounsi took his own sons to the Grand Mosque and reminisced about a time when he stood by his own father's side as a child during Hajj and the smaller pilgrimage known as Umrah.

"If something happens to me, you and your brothers will have to stay together and continue my work," Taalat Tounsi said, according to his son, Majed.

"We all decided to work this year for the first time in the service of pilgrims, to honour the memory of our father," the 32-year-old doctor said.

The Tounsi family have been serving as guides for 80 years.

A former sports journalist before devoting himself to the vocation, which is passed down from generation to generation, Taalat Tounsi died at the age of 52, leaving behind six sons and two daughters.

After leaving Mount Arafat, pilgrims will travel to Muzdalifah overnight before performing the stoning of the Devil ritual.

Saudi Deputy Minister of Hajj and Umrah Abdul Fattah Mashat said 1,700 buses would take the pilgrims from Mina to Muzdalifah, where they will spend the night before the third day of Hajj.

The pilgrimage ends with the Eid Al Adha celebration, marked by the distribution of meat to the poor around the world.

- With additional reporting from AFP