Latest updates from top global and Saudi news sources
Last updated: 6 May 2026, 2:44 AM (Saudi time)
Saudi Tourism Minister inspects Hajj 2026 facilities as 566,000 new beds are added to Makkah through a new temporary licensing system. New hospitality rules require all providers to obtain official approval.
A guide to Zamzam water for Hajj 2026: its 4,000-year history from Hajar's desperate search, where to find it in the Haram, how to take it home (5L bottle per pilgrim), the Sunnah of drinking it, and its geological uniqueness.
Saudi Arabia deploys the Baseer AI platform and real-time colour-coded crowd tracking at the Grand Mosque for Hajj 2026, part of 150+ initiatives across 60 languages to manage millions of pilgrims safely.
Saudi authorities completed 47 hours of Ka'bah maintenance and raised the Kiswa on April 18 with a team of 34 craftsmen, alongside Maqam Ibrahim beautification and 230+ cameras at Miqat stations.
Saudi authorities have completed 4,700 man-hours of maintenance on the Ka'bah and Maqam Ibrahim, including marble restoration and expansion joint replacement, ahead of Hajj 2026.
Saudi Arabia has revealed plans for a new Makkah international airport, a metro system with completed feasibility studies, an AI crowd management programme, and integrated Saudia-Saudi Railways ticketing as part of a large-scale infrastructure overhaul of the Holy City.
New multi-use development project planned for Mecca pilgrimage site upi.com
Saudi Arabia: Over 52 million worshippers visit Mecca and Medina during Safar Gulf News
How Ibn Battuta's Makkah pilgrimage turned into 29-year journey marked by shipwrecks, bandits and Black Death The National
Guest column | A trip to Mecca was my mom’s last wish. It was full of grief and joy. The Washington Post
From Egypt to the Holy Lands: Mapping Late Ottoman Egyptian Pilgrimage Routes to Medina, Mecca, and Jerusalem Northeastern University
Bound for Mecca, These Pilgrims Rode From Spain on Horses — and on Instagram The New York Times