Pilgrims Pour Into Mina
Siraj Wahab, Arab News Staff

Pilgrims perform tawaf around the Kaaba at the Grand Mosque
on the eve of Haj. (Reuters)

MINA, 30 January 2004 — Pilgrims started pouring into this
tent city near Makkah on the eve of the annual pilgrimage
as Saudi authorities said all arrangements were in place
for the world’s largest Muslim gathering.

The logistics required to support the millions of pilgrims
are astounding. Interior Ministry officials told a press
conference here that all preparations for the Haj were
complete.

Twenty thousand buses were called into service to transport
some 1.5 million pilgrims from Makkah to Mina after Isha
prayers last night, although many pilgrims chose to walk to
the tent city.

More than 10,000 food outlets have been set up to feed the
faithful. Bakeries are equipped to make 10 million loaves
of bread a day.

The Ministry of Health is on full alert, waiting to serve
the guests of God. “We have opened 29 health centers in
Mina, 46 in Arafat and six in Muzdalifah,” said Dr. Khaled
Mirghalani of the Health Ministry.

“We have huge stockpiles of medicines to combat any
outbreak of disease. However, there are no reports of any
contagious diseases among the pilgrims,” he said.

The pilgrims will spend the day in prayer and meditation in
Mina, which has been transformed into a site of fireproof
tents.

Before dawn on Saturday, the faithful will move toward
Mount Arafat, a site revered in Islam, for the culmination
of the Haj, symbolizing the Final Judgment.

They will then return to Mina the next day after spending
the night in Muzdalifa to stone at Jamrat, or pillars
representing the devil, and there sacrifice animals. They
will spend two more days in Mina to take part in the
symbolic stoning of the devil.

The precise number of pilgrims has not been published.
Yesterday was the last day for residents of the Kingdom to
secure Haj permits to take part in this year’s pilgrimage.

Maj. Gen. Abdul Aziz Sajeeni, director general of the
Passport Department, said Wednesday that up until Tuesday
evening 1.39 million Muslims had come from overseas. Haj
Minister Iyad Madani has said that some 500,000 Saudis and
expatriate workers will take part in the Haj.

Hospitals and health centers have been set up to aid the
faithful who should find the Haj easier this year thanks to
the cooler climate. Local temperatures vary between 17 and
32 degrees Celsius (63 and 90 Fahrenheit).

Among the early arrivals to Mina were old and young
pilgrims who felt it was better to start out in advance
rather than getting caught up in the general rush today.

“We came in early because the weather is pleasant and we
came on foot from Makkah,” said Saghir Ushani and his five
friends. “It took us three hours to reach Mina, but we took
a lot of breaks,” said Saghir, a French national.

There were many visitors to Jamrat Al-Aqaba, a place that
will be visited by every pilgrim on Sunday for the stoning
ritual. “We are here to familiarize ourselves with it. We
will be coming here tomorrow along with our group. This
will be our second Haj, and we know that it is extremely
difficult to locate your tents at the last moment. So we
are a bit like a pilot team for our group,” said another
pilgrim who arrived early.

The road from Jeddah was in good condition and traffic
moved swiftly. Busloads of pilgrims and trucks packed with
sheep drove along the right lanes while police escorting
VIPs whizzed by on the left.

The four checkpoints on the Jeddah-Makkah Expressway are
fully manned, but caused no delay. In Mina itself, traffic
congestion is being kept to a minimum by keeping small
vehicles away from the place. Only 4x4 vehicles with
permits were being allowed in. Abdul Raees and his extended
family have come for Haj. Their group includes not only
children but spouses and grandchildren as well, with the
youngest member to join them just two months old. They had
completed their tawaf in Makkah earlier in the day and took
a taxi into Mina.

“We are so very happy to be here,” said Adil Muhammad Yusuf
from Somalia. “We wanted to arrive early to beat the rush
and it seems like we have succeeded. We walked from the
beginning of this bridge with all our bags and children in
tow. We have walked about two kilometers and Allah only
knows how much more we have to walk. We want to get as
close as possible to all the facilities before making our
camp.”

— Additional reporting by Saeed Haider and Hassan Adawi



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