In the pilgrimage, millions of Muslims from across the world trek from holy city of Mecca to assemble in Mina in Saudi Arabia.
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Makkah: From Asia, Africa and points in between, almost 1.5 million Muslims begin the annual Hajj in western Saudi Arabia Saturday, undeterred by a stampede which a year ago killed around 2,300.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) – Saudi Arabia’s top cleric will not be delivering this year’s prestigious hajj sermon on Sunday for the first time in more than three decades.
The pilgrimage is among the largest religious gatherings in the world.
In one of several safety measures implemented by the Saudi authorities, access to the Kaaba is suspended during prayers, and the walk around it is stopped to avoid overcrowding.
However, counts carried out by countries who repatriated bodies showed that more than 2,000 people may have died in the crush, according to news agencies. Security has also been reinforced around Islam’s holiest site, where officers in red berets and camouflage uniforms man green plastic barricades to control the crowd.
Meanwhile, Hashim Al-Falih, chairman of the Haj Preparation Committee at the Makkah Governorate, said that 189,000 people who attempted to enter Makkah and the Holy Sites were sent back from checkpoints since the beginning of the Hajj season until Thursday. During the weekly Friday prayers, the white-clad throng made the area around the Kaaba resemble a snow-dusted field from above.
Officials have been issuing pilgrims with bracelets that store their personal data, after some foreign officials expressed concern about difficulties in identifying the stampede dead.
The Saudi hajj and umrah ministry has mobilized some 60,000 staff.
– More than 1.4 million pilgrims from overseas are expected to join in excess of 100,000 from inside Saudi Arabia.
A spiritual journey meant to cleanse the faithful of sin and bring them closer to God, this year’s Hajj is expected to be attended by more than 1.5 million pilgrims. Said Ohadi, head of Iran’s Hajj Organisation, told AFP. It took place as pilgrims – many of them Iranians – were going to the Jamarat Bridge for a stoning ritual.
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As of late August, six Egyptians had died in during pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
