Nigeria, Feb. 11 -- The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has granted Nigeria a seven-day extension to complete the capturing and grouping of pilgrims' data for the 2026 Hajj exercise.

It comes amid leadership changes at the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) following Monday's resignation of its chairman, Abdullahi Usman.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the Kingdom had earlier closed the Nusuk Masar data-capturing platform, effectively ending the global window for submitting pilgrims' information for the 2026 Hajj.

The deadline for the exercise was 8 February.

NAHCON Deputy Director of Information and Public Relations, Fatima Usara, initially disclosed the closure in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday.

However, in a follow-u...