Crowd management is a major concern during the annual pilgrimage, one of the five pillars of Islam which drew more than 1.8 million Muslims last year, according to official figures.

Those turned away in recent days from the holy city, home to the Grand Mosque, include 153,998 foreigners who travelled from abroad on tourist visas rather than the required hajj visas, the official Saudi Press Agency reported.

In addition, Saudi authorities have rounded up 171,587 others who are based in Saudi Arabia but are not residents of Mecca and did not have hajj permits, the SPA added.

The hajj, which begins on June 14, must be undertaken at least once by all Muslims with the means.

It involves a series of activities completed over at least four days in Mecca and its surroundings in the west of Saudi Arabia.

Many seek to complete the rites through unofficial channels as obtaining formal permits and travel packages can be extremely costly, with limited quotas for pilgrims from each country.

Saudi Arabia is home to the holiest sites in Islam at Mecca and Medina, and the Gulf kingdom makes billions of dollars each year from the hajj and lesser pilgrimage, known as umrah, undertaken at other times of the year.

More than 1.3 million registered pilgrims had arrived in Saudi Arabia for the hajj as of Saturday, Mecca regional authorities said on X.

AFP