The stampede legacy has contributed to renewed tensions between Saudi Arabia and its regional rival Iran, which is not sending pilgrims for the first time in almost three decades.
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Following preliminary rituals at the Grand Mosque in Mecca before this week, the pilgrims will on Saturday make their way by bus, train or on foot in soaring temperatures of 40C to Mina, about 5km (three miles) to the east.
The Hajj began on September 10 and lasts for five days.
The disaster deepened tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, as numerous pilgrims killed were Iranian.
On Sunday they’ll travel to Mount Arafat, several kilometres away, for what will be the main part of the pilgrimage.
The worshipers are following in the footsteps of Prophet Muhammad, who performed the same rituals about 1,400 years ago.
Meanwhile, the Governor of Mecca, Prince Khalid Al Faisal announced to the press on Sunday the success of the first day of Hajj as all pilgrims preformed that day rituals easily.
The rite will begin on Monday this year, officials say.
Officials have been issuing pilgrims with bracelets that store their personal data, after some foreign officials expressed concern about difficulties in identifying the stampede dead.
Saudi Arabia has launched a Farsi-language satellite television channel broadcasting the hajj as Iranians abstain from the pilgrimage amid a dispute between the two regional rivals.
“The aim is to equip all pilgrims” from overseas, who are expected to number more than 1.4 million, he said.
A Nigerian visitor, Lawan Nasir, 45, said the loss of a cousin in last year’s stampede did not stop him from coming.
The Arab League should criticize Saudi Arabia’s support for terrorism and find a way to support the Palestinian nation instead of backing the Saudi military aggression and conduct in Yemen, Syria, Bahrain and Iraq, as well as its incompetence for handling the Hajj pilgrimage.
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Despite the measures Saudi Arabia says it has taken to prevent overcrowding and improve safety, Iranian authorities continue to question the kingdom’s right to manage Islam’s holiest places.
