Just hours before Ramadan began, dozens of Muslim worshippers undertaking the Umrah pilgrimage on Monday performed Tawaf around the Kaaba.
Umrah is the Islamic pilgrimage to Makkah that can be undertaken at any time of year and attracts millions of Muslims from across the globe annually.
During Ramadan, the Kaaba is usually filled with thousands of worshippers.
However, with the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, the number of visitors to the holy city is restricted.
Limited numbers undertaking the Umrah each day ensures social distancing, authorities say. All worshippers also wore masks.
Throughout Ramadan, the Grand Mosque in Makkah will be sterilised 10 times a day using 60,000 litres of sanitising material, authorities said. Thirty thermal cameras to detect signs of a fever will also check all arrivals.
Saudi Arabia, home to Islam's holiest shrines, has recorded a surge in Covid-19 infections pushing authorities to announce new measures.
There were 842 cases on Monday and 11 deaths bringing total cases to 399,000 and fatalities to 6,765.
On Sunday, the government announced that second vaccination jabs would be postponed in order to give the largest number of people a first dose.
The Hajj and Umrah Ministry said pilgrims performing Umrah during the holy month must have had at least one jab of the vaccine against the virus or otherwise be immune.
Employees working in the Hajj and Umrah industry must have vaccinated all staff before April 12 or provide negative PCR tests every two weeks.
During the holy month, Muslims abstain from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset. It typically lasts for either 29 or 30 days.
Ramadan around the Middle East – in pictures
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Children pose for a photo in front of a large graffiti depicting cultural elements including mosques, churches, old window lattices of the old town of Iraq's northern city of Mosul, on the first night of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan, during a celebration hosted by a local cultural NGO. AFP -
A Syrian man adjusts decorations for the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan at the Clock Square in Syria's rebel-held northwestern city of Idlib. AFP -
Lebanese military fire a blank from a cannon a day prior to Ramadan to announce the holy month in Beirut, Lebanon. EPA -
Vehicles, motorcycles, and tuk-tuks (motorised rickshaws) drive past a stall selling Ramadan lanterns along the main street in the northern suburb of Shubra (home to a large Christian population) of Egypt's capital Cairo, at the start of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. AFP -
A Palestinian boy waves fireworks as people celebrate the start of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah. AFP -
People pray at the Eyup Sultan Mosque, in Istanbul a day before Ramadan. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was forced to announce renewed restrictions following a spike on COVID-19 cases, such as weekend lockdowns and the closure of cafes and restaurants during Ramadan, the holy Muslim month, starting on April 13. AP Photo -
A vendor decorates his shop at a market in Kuwait City marking the start of the holy month of Ramadan. AFP -
Muslims pray during the first dawn prayers of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, around the Kaaba, the cubic building at the Grand Mosque, as they keep social distancing to help curb the spread of the coronavirus, in the Muslim holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. During Ramadan, the holiest month in the Islamic calendar, Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and sex from dawn to dusk. AP Photo -
People sit near the Dome of the Rock at the Aqsa Mosque compound, Islam's third holiest site, in the old city of Jerusalem, on the eve of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. AFP
