The overstayers are taking advantage of the low cost of sacrificial meat and the fact some Saudis leave behind their meat or distribute it among the overstayers after ensuring the sacrifice has been carried out.

Arshad Haji, a Pakistani overstayer, said that he prepared boxes to carry as much sacrificial meat as possible to take it to Makkah and sell it there.

"I collected so far more than 10 parcels from people who distributed it for charity. Outside Mina, we transport the meat to Makkah. I am expecting to make SR20,000 this Haj just from selling what I have collected to restaurants and butcher shops," added Haji.

Belal Ali, an overstayer of African nationality, said that he has been collecting sacrificial meat for four years now.

During this period, he collects as much sacrificial meat as possible and sometimes he buys it.

"We buy the meat right after the animals are slaughtered. I pay between SR60 and SR120 per goat depending on the size and type of sacrificial meat. As for cows, it costs between SR250 and SR300 per head,” Ali said.

He added: “A small pickup truck is always waiting to transport the sacrificial meat to Makkah, Jeddah or Taif. We sell the goats for average SR400 per head and the cows for SR1,000 to SR2,000 per head. We make good profits during this time of the year."

The scenes outside the slaughterhouses are the same each year. Women and men gather there waiting for people to donate their sacrificial meat. There are those who carry the meat on their backs, while others carry them on motorcycles to Makkah.

A number of citizens interviewed denounced the meat black market flourishing in Makkah, saying it would force them to boycott meat from restaurants for the next two months and rely on home cooking.