The annual Hajj has been drastically downsized from 2.5 million pilgrims to as little as 1,000 this year due to the global coronavirus pandemic.

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Pilgrims move several feet apart, circling the cube-shaped Kaaba in the first rituals of the hajj, as they keep social distancing to limit exposure and the potential transmission of the coronavirus, at the Grand Mosque in Makkah.(Saudi Media Ministry via AP).

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The hajj, which started on Wednesday, is intended to bring about greater humility and unity among Muslims. (Saudi Media Ministry via AP).

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A new kiswa, or covering, is placed atop Islam's holiest site the Kaaba in Mecca on July 29, 2020. The gold-stitched black covering is changed each year during the hajj pilgrimage ahead of the Eid al-Adha celebrations. (Saudi Media Ministry via AP).

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Saudi Media Ministry, security personnel standby as a limited numbers of pilgrims arrive at the Grand Mosque (Saudi Media Ministry via AP).

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A limited numbers of pilgrims move several feet apart, circling the  Kaaba in the first rituals of the hajj Wednesday, July 29, 2020. (Saudi Media Ministry via AP).

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The hajj, which started on Wednesday, is intended to bring about greater humility and unity among Muslims. (Saudi Media Ministry via AP).

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Hundreds of Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba, the cubic building at the Grand Mosque, as they keep social destination to protect themselves against the coronavirus (AP Photo).

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Muslim pilgrims pray inside the Namira Mosque in Arafatnear the holy city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, July 30, 2020. (Saudi Ministry of Media via AP).

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In this July 26, 2020, photo, the luggage of pilgrims is sanitized in a hotel lobby in Mecca ahead of the annual hajj pilgrimage. (Saudi Ministry of Media).