Saudi Arabia has decided on Wednesda after After 2.5 yearsy to remove the protective barriers around the holy Kaaba allowing worshippers to once more touch the house of Allah.
The barriers were installed to ensure social distancing between pilgrims as a precautionary measure as part of efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
The General President of the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque, Sheikh Dr Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz Al-Sudais on Tuesday announced the issuance of the kind approval to lift the protective barriers around the Kaaba, coinciding with the start of the Umrah season.
Al-Sudais said that this decision showed the care the Saudi leadership took for visitors to the Grand Mosque and its devotion to facilitating their rituals in a safe and spiritual atmosphere, given the huge number of visitors that the mosque had begun to witness with the start of the Umrah season.
It is noteworthy that on Tuesday, July 1, 2020, for the first time, the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques placed barriers around the Kaaba, in implementation of the instructions of the National Center for the Prevention of the COVID-19 virus, including preventing pilgrims from touching or kissing the Kaaba or the Black Stone.
On March 4, 2020, Saudi Arabia decided to temporarily suspend Umrah for citizens and residents; for fear of the spread of the COVID-19, the authorities also decided to prevent visiting the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah.
