Al Mayadeen English
With over 1.47 million international pilgrims already arriving for the 2025 Hajj, Saudi Arabia continues to enforce strict regulations to prevent overcrowding and heat deaths during the pilgrimage. A long-standing quota system allocates Hajj slots by country based on its population, while entry restrictions ahead of the Hajj seasons are tightened to curb unauthorized pilgrims, which the Saudi Ministry of Interior warned against. Otherwise, performing or attempting to perform Hajj without a permit can result in a 20,000 SAR (5331.89 USD) fine, deportation, and a 10-year re-entry ban into the country.
Crossroads of religion, cemetery of resistance: Stories you won't hear about Iran
Al Mayadeen English delegate to Iran, Karim Sharara, takes you through Tehran’s Mirza Kouchak Khan Street, where the Religion's Junction lies, where Muslims, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians live side by side, and to the graves of Iran’s martyred scientists, assassinated by "Israel." It’s a rare lens into a society rooted in religious coexistence and national sacrifice.