Why was hajj for Iranian pilgrims canceled this year?

After last-minute negotiations, Iran and Saudi Arabia failed to provide a breakthrough for Iranian pilgrims to attend the hajj pilgrimage, which is mandatory for all able Muslims. Saeed Ohadi, head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, accused Saudi Arabia of imposing new “domineering” conditions for Iran’s participation.

Iranian officials had previously publicly discussed two of the conditions that were causing friction between Iran and Saudi for the participation of Iranian pilgrims to the holy sites in Saudi Arabia: a ban on Iranian planes and a requirement for Iranians to travel to a third country for a visa. Saudi Arabia cut ties with Iran after its Tehran embassy was attacked in January in response to the execution of a prominent Shiite cleric.

During a May 30 news conference, Ohadi said that it took three hours of negotiations for Saudi Arabia to agree to allow Iranian pilgrims to use Iranian planes for travel. On the issue of visas, Ohadi said Saudi’s hajj officials, during negotiations in Saudi Arabia, told them to discuss the matter with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry but did not offer any solutions. Saudi Arabia’s interest section in Iran is in the Swiss Embassy.

In response to recent statements by Saudi officials that they would offer Iranian pilgrims electronic visas, Ohadi said that this agreement took “seven to eight hours” of negotiations and added that the process for inputting all of the information for the hajj was “very complex” and time-consuming.