Despite the uncertainty triggered by the Iran war, Saudi officials noted over the weekend that more pilgrims had travelled from abroad to participate in this year’s hajj than in 2025.

Saudi Arabia has been directly hit by missiles and drones during the Iran war, but the country is hosting the all-important Muslim pilgrimage anyway.

Muslim worshippers gathered in Mecca for prayers on Friday in the final days before the start of the Hajj, one of the biggest gatherings in the Islamic calendar.

The annual Islamic Hajj pilgrimage, one of the Five Pillars of Islam, has begun