Two years of drastic restrictions on the number of pilgrims who could perform the hajj emptied shops and hotels across the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca. But business owners are hoping for a quick recovery as hundreds of thousands of worshippers flock to the region this week
Muslim pilgrims shop in the market in the holy city of Mecca on July 4, 2022, as Saudi Arabia hosts some one million people, including 850,000 from abroad, for the hajj pilgrimage, a key pillar of Islam that all able-bodied Muslims are required to perform at least once in a lifetime. Credit: AFP