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Saturday, December 22, 2007

All Smiles as Haj Ends Safely

MAKKAH, 22 December 2007 — More than a million pilgrims who performed Haj this year, especially those from within the Kingdom returned home yesterday after successfully completing their Haj rituals. They stoned the Jamrat in Mina before performing the farewell tawaf in Makkah. The remaining pilgrims will stay in Mina to stone the Jamrat for the fourth day.
Saudi security forces went on high alert yesterday as hundreds of thousands of pilgrims rushed to the Jamrat Bridge to complete the stoning ritual for leaving Mina before the sunset. Deadly accidents and stampedes have taken place in the past Haj seasons on this day.
Some 362 people were killed in January 2006 in a crush at the Jamrat, the worst Haj accident in recent years. Since then authorities have completed more than half of a massive Jamrat Bridge project at a cost of SR4.2 billion. Pilgrims can now throw stones on three levels and a fourth is under construction.
Police yesterday imposed a strict one-way system, so that pilgrims who have completed the rite do not mix with those moving in the other direction. They also made people leave their bags outside.
Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, chairman of the Central Haj Committee, expressed his happiness over the successful conclusion of the Haj. He emphasized the need for stopping the squatting of pilgrims in public places and the use of old vehicles.
“I have also noticed that many pilgrims have sneaked into holy places without having a Haj permit... We will find solutions to all these problems,” he said.
Health Minister Dr. Hamad Al-Manie announced yesterday that this year’s Haj was free of contagious diseases. He said his ministry had taken a series of measures to prevent the spread of infectious diseases during the Haj season.
“We checked every pilgrim who arrived from abroad to make sure he had taken necessary vaccinations against diseases such as meningitis.”
Al-Manie said the ministry had transported many sick pilgrims from hospitals in Makkah and Madinah to Arafat to help them complete their Haj rituals in coordination with Tawafa organizations.
He said the ministry had readied 21 hospitals and 124 health centers in Makkah and other holy sites to serve pilgrims. He praised doctors, nurses and paramedical staff for their dedicated services.
The Grand Mosque in Makkah yesterday overflew with pilgrims as many of them had come to attend Juma prayers and perform tawaf al-wida (farewell circumambulation) around the Holy Ka’aba. The Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques Affairs deployed 6,600 workers including guides to welcome the pilgrims.
More than 10,000 security officers including traffic police were placed on roads and streets leading to Makkah to control the huge traffic.
“We have completed all preparations to welcome pilgrims at the two holy mosques,” said Saleh Al-Hosayen, head of the presidency. “This year we have increased the number of Islamic scholars who are capable of providing religious advices to pilgrims as well as the number of translators,” he said.
Maj. Gen. Yousuf Matar, commander of the security forces inside the Grand Mosque, said more than 4,000 security officers have been deployed to facilitate the movement of pilgrims within the mosque.
Pilgrims, drawing to the end of their five-day mission, said they were delighted with the arrangements, and pleased to have completed their religious obligations with relative ease. Every Muslim who has the means should complete the Haj at least once in his or her lifetime.
“I feel very comforted, like a new person, and I hope that God will accept my pilgrimage,” said Mahdi Abdul Halim, an Egyptian-born engineer from Connecticut doing Haj with three family members.
“I feel spiritually at peace and everything went perfectly,” said Abdul Karim Al-Atawi, a Saudi soldier from Tabuk.
Mohamed Sirajuddin, an Indian engineer living in Dammam, said no other country in the world could organize such an event, because of the experience the Saudis now have in large crowd-control measure.
He said he was doing the pilgrimage with his mother and father but he had to throw their stones for them because they had weak knees and could not face the long walk from the tented encampment.
For Egyptian Yousuf Abu Al-Reesh, 65, who worked at a poultry farm in Saeed it was a dream came true. For the past 25 years he has been collecting money for this spiritual journey.
Tears of happiness flowed from his eyes as he spoke to Arab News. Abdul Kareem Ali, a Yemeni, said he never thought he could make it as he was suffering from diabetes and heart diseases.
Maleeka Abdul Haq, a Moroccan woman from Tanja, was so happy that she prayed for all those who helped her to complete the Haj rituals. Ahmed Sabri, director general of Hilton in Ghardaga, Egypt, said it was his first Haj. “We are thankful to the Saudi government for providing all facilities to pilgrims,” he said.
Saifullah Mahboub, a Tunisian pilgrim, who came from France, described the Haj crowd management a miracle as millions of pilgrims board on thousands of buses moving within a limited area at specific times.
“It was a wonderful experience. I will narrate my Haj story to my kids and grandsons,” he told Arab News.
Thousands of pilgrims have already left for Madinah to offer special prayers at the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah. More than 700,000 foreign pilgrims are expected to visit Madinah within the next few days at the conclusion of their pilgrimage. -- (Arab News)

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