1.2 million pilgrims arrive in Saudi Arabia ahead of hajj

By Associated Press, 2/28/2001 19:19

MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from around the world made their way toward the holy city of Mecca Wednesday ahead of the hajj, or annual Muslim pilgrimage.

To prepare for the pilgrims' arrival and their four-day stay in Mecca, Saudi Arabia has mobilized all its facilities, dispatching security forces, medical teams and guides.

Police set up roadblocks on the highway linking Mecca to the Red Sea port city of Jiddah, checking the visas of pilgrims and turning back those without the required hajj entry permit.

The pilgrims, many of them wearing surgical masks for protection from contagious diseases, prayed at the Grand Mosque, circled the cubic black stone called the Kaaba and recited from the Quran, Islam's holy book.

The streets of Mecca were bustling, with many pilgrims shopping and making final arrangements ahead of the hajj, which peaks on Sunday when pilgrims start gathering on Mount Arafat, 12 miles from Mecca.

They will spend the night there, the first ritual of the hajj. Muslims believe that Islam's Prophet Mohammed gave his last sermon 14 centuries ago on Mount Arafat.

The other rituals of the hajj will be performed on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Pilgrims will throw stones at two pillars outside Mecca that symbolize the devil and circle the Kaaba.

Saudi Arabia is expecting close to 2.5 million pilgrims this year. Last year, officials said 2.73 million people performed the hajj.

The hajj is required at least once in the lifetime of every Muslim who is financially and physically able to perform it.

As part of an annual tradition, Saudi King Fahd is hosting 2,500 pilgrims, 1,000 of them relatives of Palestinians killed in clashes with Israeli forces and the others from Europe, Asia, Africa and North America.

Saudi authorities have set up more than 40,000 fireproof tents and plan to distribute 10 million water bottles free of charge.

Safety has been a key issue during the hajj due to the massive crowding.

In 1998, some 180 pilgrims died in a stampede. A similar stampede in 1994 left 270 dead. During the 1997 pilgrimage, fires driven by high winds tore through a tent city outside Mecca, trapping and killed more than 340 pilgrims and injuring 1,500.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2001