MAKKAH — The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah urged pilgrims to avoid rush hours for performing the rituals of Umrah during the last 10 days of Ramadan. The ministry has identified nine hours as the rush hours that witness huge flow of pilgrims and overcrowding at the Grand Mosque to perform Umrah.The ministry explained that the period from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. and from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m.experiences high traffic, based on traffic indicators during the first two weeks of Ramadan. The period from 11 p.m. to 4 a.m. experiences moderate traffic, while the period from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. experiences light traffic. Security forces are working to beef up their readiness for the remainder of Ramadan to cope with the anticipated increase in Umrah pilgrims and worshipers at the Grand Mosque. They are implementing foolproof measures for crowd management and organization, traffic management, provision of humanitarian services, adoption of security technologies and artificial intelligence in crowd management, as well as facilitating access to the Central Haram Area, and reducing traffic congestion for buses designated to transport visitors to and from the Grand Mosque.