More than one million Muslims from both within and outside Saudi Arabia will be allowed to attend this year’s Hajj, a significant increase after two years of epidemic restrictions led to significantly reduced pilgrimages.

Many Muslims outside Saudi Arabia, who have been prevented from performing the Hajj since 2019, were encouraged by the decision, which fell short of restoring regular circumstances.

The Hajj, one of Islam’s five pillars, must be performed at least once in the lifetime of any Muslim who has the financial wherewithal to do so. Around 2.5 million people attended this year’s event, making it one of the biggest religious gatherings in the world.

It was only in 2020 that Saudi officials decided to limit participation to 1,000 pilgrims.

There were 60,000 complete vaccinations for Saudi nationals and residents selected through lottery the next year.

The Saudi Hajj ministry said early Saturday that it “had authorised one million pilgrims, both international and local, to do the Hajj.”