RIYADH: The first group of foreign Umrah pilgrims arrived in Saudi Arabia on Sunday after a temporary ban to curb the spread of COVID-19 was lifted.

Pilgrims were greeted with gifts of dates, roses and Zam Zam water on arrival at the Kingdom’s airports. 

Umrah pilgrims from abroad are required to present a certificate on arrival that has been validated in their home country and states details of them receiving a COVID-19 jab that is approved by the Kingdom.

They must also adhere to quarantine measures if they are coming from countries where there is a ban on direct entry to the Kingdom.

The deputy minister of Hajj and Umrah, Abdulfattah bin Sulaiman Mashat, said that all Saudi Umrah companies have been preparing to serve foreign pilgrims and are dedicated to providing the best services to the pilgrims from the point of arrival till departure.

The Kingdom has approved vaccines made by Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca.