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Annual hajj pilgrimage begins
Source: Agencies |
November 15, 2010, Monday
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AT least 2.5 million Muslims began the annual hajj pilgrimage yesterday, heading to an encampment near the holy city of Mecca to retrace the route taken by the Prophet Mohammad 14 centuries ago.
Traveling on foot, by public transport and in private cars, the pilgrims will stream through a mountain pass to a valley at Mina, some 3 kilometers outside Mecca. The path is the same as the Prophet himself took on his last pilgrimage.
The hajj, one of the world's biggest displays of mass religious devotion, lasts for five days. In the past it has been marred by fires, hotel collapses, police clashes with protesters and deadly stampedes.
Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef said on Wednesday the kingdom could not rule out an attack by al-Qaida's regional wing, although its forces were ready to combat any such operations.
Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula yesterday denied it had any intentions of targeting Muslim pilgrims at hajj.
Islam is now embraced by a quarter of the world's population and hajj is a duty for all able-bodied Muslims who can afford it. Many wait for years to get a visa. "I can't explain the feeling of being here," said Mahboob Bangosh, a Canadian pilgrim from Toronto.
To minimize the risk of overcrowding and lessen congestion on the roads, the authorities will for the first time be operating a Chinese-built train at hajj sites.
The US$1.8 billion railway project has 18 kilometers of track and will transport 180,000 passengers this year, said Habib Zein Al Abideen, assistant minister for municipal and rural affairs.
Traveling on foot, by public transport and in private cars, the pilgrims will stream through a mountain pass to a valley at Mina, some 3 kilometers outside Mecca. The path is the same as the Prophet himself took on his last pilgrimage.
The hajj, one of the world's biggest displays of mass religious devotion, lasts for five days. In the past it has been marred by fires, hotel collapses, police clashes with protesters and deadly stampedes.
Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef said on Wednesday the kingdom could not rule out an attack by al-Qaida's regional wing, although its forces were ready to combat any such operations.
Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula yesterday denied it had any intentions of targeting Muslim pilgrims at hajj.
Islam is now embraced by a quarter of the world's population and hajj is a duty for all able-bodied Muslims who can afford it. Many wait for years to get a visa. "I can't explain the feeling of being here," said Mahboob Bangosh, a Canadian pilgrim from Toronto.
To minimize the risk of overcrowding and lessen congestion on the roads, the authorities will for the first time be operating a Chinese-built train at hajj sites.
The US$1.8 billion railway project has 18 kilometers of track and will transport 180,000 passengers this year, said Habib Zein Al Abideen, assistant minister for municipal and rural affairs.
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