Re: Mecca for the rich: Islam’s holiest site ‘turning into Vegas’
No pilgrim is allowed to come for hajj who does not have acccomodation. The pilgrims on the street are illegals. The Saudis only issue hajj visas and permits to people who are part of a private or government-sponsored group, for which accomodation must be arranged.
Those poor pilgrims on the street are not supposed to be there anyway.
Our hajj guides explained that they tend to either come for umrah a month or two and illegally overstay their visas in Makkah until hajj, or they sneak in to Makkah over the mountains (they can’t take the roads, because the Saudis check road traffic to ensure only authorized pilgrims are coming.