Makkah: Over 1.5 million pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia from outside the kingdom for the upcoming Hajj, exceeding the number of international visitors from last year, a Saudi official has confirmed.

"The total number of pilgrims arriving from abroad has reached 1,518,153," Saleh Al-Murabba, commander of Saudi Arabia's Hajj Passport Forces, told a press conference late Friday. The figures are expected to rise further over the next two days as pilgrims continue to arrive ahead of the formal rituals beginning on Monday.

Last year, the total number of pilgrims at Hajj reached 1,673,320, including 1,506,576 from outside Saudi Arabia.

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