By KADIRI ABDULRAHMAN

The Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) says a total of 1.70 million pilgrims performed the 2026 Hajj pilgrimage, an increase from the figures recorded in 2025.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that GASTAT is the Saudi government agency responsible for compiling the annual Hajj census.

The official statistics, released for the 2026 Hajj season, covers both male and female pilgrims who participated in the annual pilgrimage across Makkah al-Mukarramah and other holy sites.

According to the data, 1.54 million pilgrims are from outside the Kingdom, while 160,646 are Saudi citizens and residents.

A breakdown of international arrivals showed that 1.48 million pilgrims entered Saudi Arabia by air, 54,429 arrived through land borders, while 6,497 pilgrims came by sea.

The agency said that the figures represented the verified official count for the 2026 pilgrimage season.

“The newly released statistics indicate a recovery in pilgrim turnout compared to 2025, when the total number of pilgrims stood at 1.67 million.

“The latest figure represents an increase of approximately 34,000 pilgrims year-on-year.

“However, the 2026 turnout remains below the 1.83 million pilgrims recorded during the 2024 Hajj season,” it said.

Meanwhile, the year-on-year statistics released by the authority showed a decline in pilgrim numbers between 2024 and 2025 before this partial rebound.

The annual pilgrimage remains one of the world’s largest religious gatherings, attracting Muslims from across the globe to the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah for the prescribed spiritual rites.(NAN)

Update news