Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Interior has announced a strict ban on taking photographs, videos or raising political and sectarian expressions at main Hajj sites. In a statement, the ministry emphasised that pilgrims are prohibited from taking photographs or recording videos within Masjid al-Haram in Makkah, Masjid an-Nabawi in Madinah, and at key Hajj locations including…
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has announced that the 2025 Arafah sermon will be broadcast live in 34 languages, including three major Nigerian languages of Hausa, Fulani, and Yoruba. The Chairman of the Edo Muslim Pilgrim Welfare Board, Musah Muhammad-Uduimoh, disclosed this on Sunday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN). He…
Brig Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd), chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), disclosed on Wednesday that two individuals who ingested cocaine allegedly en route to Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj pilgrimage were recently arrested. Marwa, speaking at the opening of a meeting of the Ministerial Committee on Drug Use Control, said the…
Saudi Arabian authorities have barred renowned Islamic scholar, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, from entering the country to perform this year’s Hajj. In a Facebook post on Monday, Sheikh Gumi revealed that although the Saudi government issued him a visa for Hajj, he was denied entry into Medina to begin his religious rites. “For some obvious reasons,…
Saudi Arabian authorities have reportedly apprehended two women alleged to be the wife and mother of Ado Aliero, one of Nigeria’s most feared bandit kingpins. This development is seen as a startling international twist to Nigeria’s fight against banditry. Sources familiar with the case revealed that the duo was picked up in an intelligence-led operation…
Nigeria is not on the list of countries facing an entry ban into Saudi Arabia from April 13, Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar has clarified. Tuggar said in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, Alkasim Abdulkadir, that Saudi authorities officially confirmed yesterday that a viral memo suggesting Nigeria’s inclusion in…
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has temporarily suspended several types of visas for citizens of Nigeria and 13 other countries, as part of measures to curb unauthorized pilgrimages ahead of the annual Hajj. According to Saudi authorities, the suspension aims to prevent unregistered individuals from attempting the pilgrimage without official permits, which poses safety and…
Saudi Arabia announced on Friday that the holy month of Ramadan will commence on Saturday, March 1, after the Ramadan crescent moon was sighted in the Kingdom. With the confirmation, more than 1.8 billion Muslims across the world will begin fasting from sunrise to sunset each day. Ramadan falls on the ninth month of the…
Dangote Petroleum Refinery had exported two jet fuel cargoes to Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil producer and a leading integrated oil and gas company globally. Saudi Aramco is majorly state-owned petroleum and is the national oil company of Saudi Arabia. President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, made this known during a visit by the…
The deaths of 1,300 pilgrims during the hajj in Saudi Arabia last year underscored the urgent need to mitigate dangers posed by extreme heat, with crowd management an essential first step, analysts say. Temperatures soared to 51.8 degrees Celsius (125 degrees Fahrenheit) in the holy city of Mecca last June as 1.8 million worshippers took…