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14 August, 2026   |   1 Rabī‘ al-awwal, 1448

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14 August, 2026, 1 Rabī‘ al-awwal, 1448

Saudi Arabia Shortens Umrah Visa Validity to One Month

04.11.2025   158184   1 min.
Saudi Arabia Shortens Umrah Visa Validity to One Month

Umrah entry visas now valid for one month instead of three from issuance date.

Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has reduced the validity period for Umrah entry visas from three months to one month from issuance date, though the permitted stay duration remains unchanged at three months after arrival.

The new regulations take effect next week (November 1, 2025) amid a record-breaking Umrah season that has already seen over four million visas issued to foreign pilgrims.

Under the updated system, Umrah visas will automatically cancel if pilgrims fail to enter Saudi Arabia within 30 days of issuance.

The three-month allowance for staying in the Kingdom after arrival remains unaffected, preserving pilgrims’ flexibility once they enter the country.

Ahmed Bajaeifer, advisor at the National Committee for Umrah and Visit, confirmed the changes to prepare for expected pilgrim increases following summer’s end and cooler temperatures in Mecca and Medina.

The current Umrah season, beginning in early June, has achieved unprecedented numbers with four million foreign pilgrims arriving within just five months. This volume surpasses previous full-season totals, demonstrating growing global demand for Umrah pilgrimage opportunities.

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Egyptian media highlight the Imam al-Bukhari Complex

22.07.2026   55029   2 min.
Egyptian media highlight the Imam al-Bukhari Complex

News portal “see.news” and the leading Egyptian newspaper “Al-Ahram” have published articles about the upcoming International Sister Cities Forum in Samarkand and the Imam al-Bukhari Complex near Samarkand, reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

According to the “see.news” portal, International Sister Cities Forum will be held in Samarkand on July 24-25th, 2026, aimed at expanding Uzbekistan's international cooperation, strengthening partnerships between cities, and developing public diplomacy. The forum's program will include an international scientific and practical conference on urban cooperation, panel sessions and roundtables, ceremonies for signing memorandums and agreements between sister cities, presentations on public diplomacy and interregional interaction, cultural and educational events for foreign delegations, study tours of Samarkand's historical monuments, as well as exhibitions showcasing the investment, tourism and cultural potential of Uzbekistan's regions.

 “Al-Ahram” correspondent, Muhammad Abdulsalam Sabrin, dedicated a report to the Imam al-Bukhari Complex near Samarkand, having visited it as part of the international scientific conference “The Mosque of the Authentic Musnad of Imam Bukhari: The Book of the Nation”. The author describes the complex as an integrated scientific and spiritual city spanning an area of about 450,000 square meters, featuring a mosque with four 75-meter minarets, an interactive museum consisting of nine pavilions with rare manuscripts and maps of Imam al-Bukhari’s travels, as well as an infrastructure designed to receive delegations from across the Muslim world. According to the journalist, the complex's capacity after reconstruction has increased from 12,000 to nearly 65,000 visitors per day and he described the site not merely as an architectural monument, but as a message of tolerance and the values of coexistence among peoples.