Amid a global pandemic that has impacted this year’s Hajj pilgrimage and celebrations, around 1,000 pilgrims made the journey to the Jamarat wall in Mina on Friday to stone one of the three pillars, before heading to Makkah to perform prayers at the Grand Mosque. The pillars, however, were stoned by small groups at a time.

Hajjis on Thursday had climbed Mount Arafaat to pray to and ask forgiveness of the Almighty. The day was spent on the plains of Arafaat before the pilgrims departed for Muzdalifah to rest. The stones normally collected at Mina by pilgrims were handed to them, sterilized, in small packages.

Arab News reports that Hajj 2020 was the smallest pilgrimage in modern times at just 1000 pilgrims. Recent years have seen over two million pilgrims from around the world converge on the Holy cities of Makkah and Madinah in Saudi Arabia.

While male pilgrims had their heads shaved and were released from the two lengths of white clothe worn during the pilgrimage, the women cut off a small lock of hair, symbolically indicating spiritual rebirth and renewal.

Meanwhile, Muslims in most countries around the world celebrated Eid al Adha on Friday, with various measures having been implemented in different countries to curtail the spread of the coronavirus.

Umm Muhammed Umar