Hajj: Over 1.5 million pilgrims arrive in Saudi Arabia despite tensions in the Middle East

More than 1.5 million international pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia for the 2026 Hajj, officials confirmed, as the annual Islamic pilgrimage proceeds amid rising tensions in the Middle East.

Saudi authorities said the influx exceeded last year’s international turnout, despite disruptions linked to ongoing regional hostilities that have affected air travel and increased transportation costs in some parts of the Gulf.

The conflict, sparked by US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, has escalated into retaliatory strikes that have disrupted airspace operations across the region, forcing the temporary cancellation of flights and the diversion of international travel.

Major airlines in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain have restored much of their operational capacity after weeks of instability.

Despite these challenges, pilgrims from around the world continued to converge on the holy city of Mecca ahead of the formal start of Hajj rites scheduled for Monday.

The commander of Saudi Arabia’s Hajj Passport Forces, Saleh Al-Murabba, revealed on Friday that the number of foreign pilgrims had already reached 1,518,153, stressing that the figure is expected to rise further within the next 48 hours as last-minute arrivals continue.

Last year, Saudi Arabia recorded a total of 1,673,320 pilgrims, including 1,506,576 international participants, underscoring the steady recovery in global participation following previous disruptions in the travel industry.

Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, is an obligatory religious duty for Muslims who are physically and financially able to undertake the journey at least once in their lifetime.

Saudi Arabian authorities have since stepped up crowd management, security deployment and logistical arrangements around Mecca’s Grand Mosque as the world’s largest annual religious gathering gathers momentum.

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