From the very early history of the Ahmadiyya Movement in the late 19th century, Ahmadis have had contact with the region in what were then a host of Ottoman provinces in the Arabian peninsula, primarily due to their spiritual connection to the two holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
In September 1912, Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad, the eldest son of Ghulam Ahmad, travelled to the Hejaz, with Mir Nasir Nawab - his maternal grandfather, and Sayyid Abdul Hayyi Arab - a companion of Ghulam Ahmad, and performed the Hajj pilgrimage.