Living on canned beans and meat, a 70-year-old Egyptian man named Mohammed has been staying in a Mecca apartment for weeks in an attempt to avoid detection by Saudi authorities and participate in the hajj pilgrimage illegally.
Mohammed is just one of many Muslims who are trying to complete the annual pilgrimage on a budget, risking arrest and deportation in the process.
He had been trying to obtain the official hajj permit in Egypt for over a decade, but with no success. Even if he had been successful, the cost of the travel package provided by Egyptian authorities was far beyond his means.
Instead, Mohammed flew to Saudi Arabia on a tourist visa and arranged for accommodation near Mount Arafat, where he is now staying with seven others, preparing for the start of the hajj rituals.
Despite the challenges, Mohammed remains determined to perform the hajj.
– Crowd control –
The hajj is a fundamental religious duty for Muslims and involves completing a series of rituals over four days in Mecca and its surroundings.
Saudi Arabia generates significant revenue from the hajj and umrah pilgrimages, with millions of Muslims participating each year.
To prevent overcrowding and ensure safety, Saudi authorities have cracked down on irregular pilgrims in recent years, imposing fines and penalties on those caught without permits.
Despite efforts to regulate pilgrimages, the issue of illegal hajj participation persists, especially with the ease of obtaining tourist visas in recent years.
– Pilgrim-smuggling –
Some unregistered pilgrims face extreme challenges, including sleeping in mosques or on the side of the road, without access to official facilities.
One Egyptian man who performed the hajj illegally described the experience as physically demanding and focused on evading security forces rather than spiritual reflection.
ht-rcb/th/kir
