Mecca frees the restrictions, and the pilgrimage is permitted by November for the foreigners.

A very small number of people have gathered around the holy site of Muslim believers Mecca on Sunday, as Saudi Arabia freed some of the restrictions imposed months ago.

Arabia had decided on restrictions for Muslim pilgrims in early March when the coronary pandemic erupted. But when states began to free the measures, Saudi Arabia on Sunday has begun to allow up to 6,000 pilgrims a day in Mecca.

Only Saudi citizens and residents will be allowed to enter this first opening stage, and each person has three hours to complete the pilgrimage.

The Great Mosque is cleaned and disinfected several times a day. Before visitors can enter the mosque for prayer, they must apply and reserve a specific time and date through an online app to avoid crowds and maintain social distance.

State television on Sunday has shown a view of fewer than 50 people at the Temple at the same time moving a few meters apart. Under normal conditions, the mosque would be filled with believers from around the world enough that people would walk side-by-side all the time of their stay, the AP reports.

The second phase of the release of measures in the Great Mosque will enter into force on 18 October, allowing up to 15,000 pilgrimages and 40,000 residents of the country for prayer at certain times.

Muslim visitors outside Saudi Arabia may be allowed to begin pilgrimage on November 1st, the Interior Ministry has said, while also clearing restrictions on international flights.

Saudi Arabia has allowed an extremely small number of believers for the pilgrimage during July, due to concerns it could become a major global hub of the virus. Visitors were selected after online application, and everyone was local.

Despite the early restrictive measures Saudi Arabia has taken, so far it has marked some 336,000 positive cases, with 4,850 dead.