Journey of a lifetime begins

Mina/Makkah, Oct 13: The valley of Mina Saturday reverberated with the Talbiyah “Labbaik Allahumma Labbaik,” (I am here, O Lord, I am here!) as tens of thousands of pilgrims poured into the tent city beginning the Haj pilgrimage, the journey of a lifetime.

The pilgrims arrived in Mina following the sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to spend the Tarwiyah Day (Watering Day) here before moving on to Mount Arafat.

Large numbers of pilgrims were seen walking down to Mina from Makkah as King Abdul Aziz Road which connects it to the Grand Mosque was jam-packed with vehicles. Only a few cars packed with pilgrims could reach the entrance of Mina. Those who reached the tent city Saturday will spend two nights in Mina before moving to Arafat Monday for the pinnacle of the Haj pilgrimage.

In Mina, pilgrims pray Dhuhr, Asr, Maghreb, and Isha, shortening their four-unit prayers so as to make them two units each, without combining them.

After performing Fajr (dawn) prayer on the 9th of Dhul Hijjah (Monday), pilgrims wait for sunrise and then move toward Arafat chanting the Talbiyah and glorifying Allah.

In Arafat, they pray Dhuhr and Asr combined at the time of Dhuhr, making each one two unit.

Officials said around 1.4 million pilgrims have already arrived from abroad, with expectations of around two million pilgrims this year. That is sharply down from last year's 3.2 million, due to forced cuts as a result of expansion work and the scare from MERS, short for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

Road blocks were set up on all roads leading to Makkah and people who did not carry official permits were turned back. This year, security patrols are deployed in remote and deserted roads to block illegals.

Interior Minister Prince Muhammad Bin Naif Wednesday warned pilgrims against exploiting the Haj for political purposes.

“The Kingdom is taking all possibilities seriously especially that Saudi Arabia has recently been the target of a violent terrorist campaign that did not exclude holy sites,” the minister said.

That was a reference to Al-Qaeda attacks that rocked the Kingdom between 2003 and 2006, prompting a relentless crackdown by authorities, which he oversaw.

“Haj is not a place for political disputes and sectarian differences,” he said.

The Kingdom has mobilized 95,000 members of the security forces, in addition to troops supporting the Defense Ministry, the National Guard and intelligence, according to the interior minister.

He also said Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has approved the creation of a permanent 40,000-strong special force to secure the pilgrimage.

The Haj has become nearly incident-free in recent years because of multibillion dollar projects to improve security.

Spokesman of the Ministry of Interior Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki announced that the majority of pilgrims have arrived in Makkah. He said an estimate on the number of pilgrims performing Haj this year had been announced earlier while the final figure will be announced on Eid Al-Adha day by the Central Statistics Department.

Maj. Gen. Al-Turki said due to the increasing population in the Muslim world it is expected that the number of pilgrims will increase every year but added that pilgrims, particularly local citizens and expatriates, are largely abiding by rules and regulations by obtaining the necessary Haj permit.

“Security authorities are apprehending any pilgrims without permits before they head to Makkah or arrive there. Performing Tawaf Al-Ifadha or Tawaf Al-Wadaa will be within the grouping system being followed by the Ministry of Haj in coordination with various authorities,” he said adding that the system is also being used to transport pilgrims to the holy sites.

After holding several workshops and meetings with authorities concerned with Haj to evaluate last year's pilgrimage, the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs has laid down an integrated plan to group pilgrims at the Jamarat Bridge. The plan aims to distribute pilgrims among different tiers of the Jamarat Bridge to prevent overcrowding.