Saudi Arabia has announced it will be banning visas for citizens of 14 countries. The visa ban, which includes India, comes ahead of the 2025 Hajj pilgrimage.
As per reports, Riyadh has banned visas for citizens of the following countries -
India
Pakistan
Bangladesh
Egypt
Indonesia
Iraq
Nigeria
Jordan
Algeria
Sudan
Ethiopia
Tunisia
Yemen
Morocco
As per reports, Saudi Arabia's decision comes in order to prevent people from trying to perform Hajj without the proper registration.
This visa ban will be in force till mid-June, when the Hajj pilgrimage is set to end.
However, as per Pakistan's ARY News, Officials have stated that individuals with Umrah visas will be allowed to enter Saudi till April 13.
An official statement from Saudi media and the foreign ministry is awaited.
Media reports have further added that the ban was enforced due to the overcrowding during the Hajj 2024 pilgrimage, which resulted in the deaths of at least 1,200 pilgrims.
Reports have stated that the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has taken this decision in order to "guarantee a safer and better-organized pilgrimage."
The mass death of pilgrims during Hajj 2024 has been attributed to overcrowding and extreme heat. As per Saudi authorities, many of the pilgrims were unauthorised for the pilgrimage last year.
Hajj 2024 was accompanied with temperatures as high as 50 degrees Celsius, resulting in exhaustion, dehydration, heat strokes and more.
As per Saudi Minister of Health Fahad Al-Jalajel, many of the deaths were attributed to pilgrims walking long distances under the sun without shelter or rest.
This year, Hajj is expected to take place between June 4 to June 9, 2025. However, the final dates depend on the sighting of the moon.