Pilgrims throng Tent City of Mina for al-Adha holiday
Saudi Arabia-Regional, Religion, 12/18/2007

Hundreds of thousands of faithful Muslims began assembling in the tent city of Mina in preparation for the annual pilgrimage.

More than 1.6 million pilgrims have come from abroad for the Hajj and will be joined by nearly one million from within the Kingdom.

Saudi Arabia has completed all preparations for the annual event, and King Abdullah has instructed all Hajj-related ministries and agencies to mobilize all their resources in the service of the guests of God.

All Muslims are required to perform Hajj at least once in their lifetimes if they have the means to do so.

King Abdullah has invited 1,000 guests to perform Hajj this year. Pilgrims from nearly 150 countries are taking part in the Hajj.

Indonesia, Iran, India, Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey have sent the largest numbers of pilgrims. About 31,000 Iraqis have also arrived for the Hajj, bringing the total number of Arab pilgrims to more than 350,000.

Saudi officials have announced that the standing on the Mount of Arafat in prayer by pilgrims, the high point of the annual pilgrimage, will take place tomorrow.

The following day will be Eid Al-Adha, the feast of the sacrifice, when Muslims slaughter lambs, goats, cows, and or camels to mark Prophet Ibrahim's readiness to sacrifice his son Ismail upon instructions from God.

Many pilgrims have started to leave for Mina yesterday after circumambulating the Holy Kaaba, the first house of worship on Earth, built by Adam. Prophet Ibrahim and his son Ismail rebuilt it some 5,000 years ago.

Most Haj rituals are related to Prophet Ibrahim, his wife Hajer and Ismail, and thus reflect the unity of humanity.

The Saudi government has given top priority to the security and safety of pilgrims and has deployed more than 50,000 security forces in holy Mecca and other holy sites of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifah to ensure a safe and secure Hajj for the guests of God.

A total of 11,000 doctors, nurses and paramedics will be on hand to provide medical care, with 4,200 beds in 21 hospitals and 145 health centers in Mecca, and the other holy places.

According to the Saudi Press Agency, 85 ambulances have also been prepared and health alerts will be issued in case of any outbreaks of contagious diseases.

The Health Ministry has given polio vaccinations to more than 200,000 pilgrims from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Sudan and Chad, according to Dr. Khaled Al-Zahrani, assistant health minister for preventive medicine.

He ruled out the possibility of a bird flu outbreak among pilgrims.

"Avian flu rarely transfers from birds to humans and we have taken all measures to prevent the spread of this disease," Zahrani said.

"We have banned the import of birds and the transportation of live birds between the Kingdom's regions for more than three years. So there is no need to worry about infected birds in the holy places," he said, adding that no case of bird flu in humans has so far been detected in the Kingdom.

Measures have been taken to prevent a repeat of the high death tolls that have often characterized past pilgrimages. The government has spent Saudi rls 4.2 billion on the high-tech Jamrat Bridge project in order to help pilgrims perform the stoning ritual easily without stampedes.

The Scouts Organization has published a directory of Mina and Arafat containing more than 3,000 bits of information related to Tawafa organizations, government departments and public service centers in the Holy Sites.

Dr. Abdullah Al-Fahd, supervisor of service camps, said the directory was published after conducting a survey of the holy places.

The Hajj is one the five major pillars, or tenets, of Islam that followers of the religion must abide by. The others are the Shahadah, the declaration of the faith; Salah the five daily prayers; Zakah or mandatory giving of a portion of a person's wealth to the needy; and Saum or fasting during the month of Ramadan.

Previous Stories:
  Pilgrims stay in Mona during the Hajj ritual   (1/11/2006)
  Stoning the devil Muslim ritual during Hajj   (1/10/2006)
  1.3 million pilgrims arrive in Saudi Arabia for al-Haj rituals   (1/3/2006)

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