Latest updates from top global and Saudi news sources
Last updated: 18 Jun 2026, 7:06 PM (Saudi time)
Saudi Arabia's Nusuk app now offers a zero-data access feature that keeps core services working without mobile data or Wi-Fi, while the Nusuk Card has become a mandatory smart ID for registered pilgrims.
Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Statistics confirmed that 1,707,301 pilgrims performed Hajj 2026, an increase over the previous year, with the vast majority arriving by air.
Saudi Arabia deployed its biggest cooling and shading operation in Hajj history for 2026, expanding shaded areas at Arafat fivefold and adding misting systems, reflective paving, drones and AI monitoring to ease extreme heat.
Saudi Arabia has released the Hajj 2027 operational calendar, with registration closing 26 September 2026, visa issuance beginning 28 January 2027, flights from 8 April and Hajj around 15 May 2027.
Saudi Arabia has begun its annual replacement of the Holy Kaaba's Kiswa, with 154 craftsmen installing a new 1,415kg covering of 47 silk panels embroidered with 68 Quranic verses in gold-plated thread.
A wooden platform once placed beside the Black Stone, used by a soldier to direct Tawaf, is now on display at the Exhibition of the Two Holy Mosques' Architecture in Makkah.
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Saudi Arabia confirms Hajj 2026. When does it start? The Columbus Dispatch
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