Hajj is an annual religious ritual, the fifth and last pillar of Islam after Shahada (believing in oneness of God), prayer, fasting and alms giving.
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“The channel aims to broadcast the message of the hajj, the eternal meanings of Islam and to show what is being provided by the kingdom” during the pilgrimage, the Saudi Press Agency quoted Turaifi as saying.
An “eye” which never closes forms the heart of the command and control centre located in Mina, near Mecca, said Colonel Saad al-Dosari, its planning chief.
The white terrycloth garments worn by men throughout the five-day hajj are forbidden to contain any stitching – a restriction meant to emphasize the equality of all Muslims and prevent wealthier pilgrims from differentiating themselves with more elaborate garments.
From his vantage point, the captain can direct the cameras and is able to zoom in to investigate any suspicious-looking or potentially risky activity.
Noting that the Saudi regime has been to insolent as not to apologize to Muslim countries for its failure to properly handle the religious rituals, the Iranian official added that Riyadh even goes as far as impeding Iranian Hajj pilgrims from performing one of the most important Islamic obligations.
During last year’s stoning ritual in Mina, a stampede killed roughly 2,300 people on their way to the Jamarat Bridge to perform the rite. The comment came after Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei denounced Saudi Arabia’s management of the Hajj.
The Saudi government has spent billions of dollars expanding the site after two stampedes in previous years killed hundreds of people. The series said 300 Iranian pilgrims caused last year’s crush by taking a wrong turn in the direction opposite to where they had been assigned to move.
Minister Yasonna Laoly earlier said the Indonesian pilgrims passed Philippine immigration and entered Saudi Arabia with fake Philippine passports, using the Philippines’ haj quota because of Indonesia’s long waiting list for the pilgrimage.
Egyptian pilgrim Mahmoud Awny said the feeling of being on Mount Arafat is “indescribable”.
As part of its intensified crowd control measures, almost a thousand new surveillance cameras have been installed at Mecca’s Grand Mosque, and the Jamarat stoning will be more tightly controlled than in previous years. The result is the sight of many in the tent city of Mina – which accommodates thousands of pilgrims – sporting bleeding heads, the paper says.
Saudi Arabia issued a death toll of 769, but figures compiled from foreign officials in more than 30 countries gave a tally nearly three times higher.
The tragic incident took place when two large masses of pilgrims converged at a crossroads during the symbolic ceremony of the stoning of Satan in Jamarat in September 2015.
“The Saudis organise everything for us”.
Its 64,000 pilgrims have been excluded from this year’s hajj for the first time in decades after the regional rivals failed to agree on security and logistics.
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According to the BBC, Iran has endorsed “an alternative event on Saturday at the holy city of Karbala in Iraq”.
