SAUDI ARABIA: Hundreds of local Mecca men volunteer to help worshipers perform their Haj pilgrimage, offering everything from travel advice to medical assistance

Record ID: 188877

  • Title: SAUDI ARABIA: Hundreds of local Mecca men volunteer to help worshipers perform their Haj pilgrimage, offering everything from travel advice to medical assistance
  • Date: 9th November 2011
  • Summary: MECCA, SAUDI ARABIA (NOVEMBER 3, 2011) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MECCA YOUTH MAKING HUMAN CHAIN ON PATH OF PILGRIMS TOWARDS GRAND MOSQUE VOLUNTEERS FROM THE MECCA YOUTH PROJECT WITH LOGO READING ARABIC (MECCA YOUTH AT YOUR SERVICE.) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MOHAMMAD AL-ARKANI, VOLUNTEER FROM THE MECCA YOUTH PROJECT, SAYING "In the pre-Islamic era, they used to serve pilgrims. The people of (the tribe of) Quraish taught their children to offer food and drink to visitors. God has blessed us and honoured us with Islam, and we (the people of Mecca) are the most eligible to volunteer and perform these services for pilgrims." PROJECT LEADERS GIVING DIRECTIONS TO VOLUNTEERS VOLUNTEER FROM THE SAUDI RED CRESCENT AUTHORITY HELPING A LOST PILGRIM LOGO OF THE PROJECT ON VEST OF VOLUNTEER. CLOSE OF LOGO READING IN ARABIC (MECCA YOUTH AT YOUR SERVICE) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MOHAMMAD NAGRO, IN CHARGE OF TRAINING AT THE MECCA YOUTH, SAYING: "Mecca Youth Programme, at your service.' This innovative programme aims to engage all the classes of Mecca's youths in the service of visitors to the house of God almighty, and offers services to visitors coming to to this blessed place." VOLUNTEER CHECKING THE ADDRESS OF THE HOUSING FOR A LOST PILGRIM AND DIRECTING HER TO THE ROAD LOST PILGRIM GOING TO HER HOUSE DIRECTOR OF GUIDE THE LOST PROGRAMME DIRECTING PILGRIM TO HIS HOUSING (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) BO DREES, PILGRIM FROM ALGERIA, SAYING: "We thank them for all their work. They are there in the morning and evening and night and day, they have worked so that we wanted for nothing." EGYPTIAN PILGRIM ASKING FOR DIRECTIONS TO BUS STATION (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MOHAMMAD ORABI, EGYPTIAN PILGRIM, SAYING: "I was with a group of young people who wanted to go to Mina. We asked where we could catch the bus to go there and the brothers here (volunteers) gave us more than excellent assistance." VARIOUS OF VOLUNTEERS FROM THE SAUDI RED CRESCENT AUTHORITY OFFERING MEDICAL ASSISTANCE TO ELDERLY PILGRIM VOLUNTEER WEARING VEST WHICH READS IN ARABIC "MECCA YOUTH AT YOUR SERVICE - THE GUIDANCE OF LOST) DIRECTING PILGRIMS TO THEIR HOUSING AREA (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MAJED AL-HARBI, DIRECTOR OF GUIDE THE LOST ,SAYING: "Our role is to guide the lost pilgrims and actively deploy around the Grand mosque in groups to guide pilgrims to their hotels and homes, with God's help." TWO VOLUNTEERS GUIDING A LOST PILGRIM TO HIS HOUSING IN MECCA VARIOUS OF VOLUNTEER FROM THE TAWAF TEAM, LEADING AN ELDERLY TURKISH PILGRIM WOMAN ON A WHEELCHAIR TO DO TAWAF AT THE GRAND MOSQUE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) UNIDENTIFIED VOLUNTEER SAYING: "We perform this service without taking any money from the pilgrim, but we receive many prayers and good whishes in return." PILGRIMS AT THE GRAND MOSQUE YARD
  • Embargoed: 24th November 2011 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia
  • Country: Saudi Arabia
  • Topics: Religion
  • Reuters ID: LVA8SV8MZ0W0GKFP7M8FDCQWM876
  • Story Text: Amongst the millions of pilgrims moving through Mecca, local volunteers can be seen and heard on the city's streets.
    The "Mecca Youth Programme", now in its sixth year, trains hundreds of local men from the city to provide volunteer services to pilgrims for Haj.
    The tradition of local residents helping foreign visitors at the site stretches back many centuries.
    "In the pre-Islamic era, they used to serve pilgrims. The people of (the tribe of) Quraish taught their children to offer food and drink to visitors," said volunteer Mohammad al-Arkani, adding that the local people are in the best position to offer assistance.
    The programme is run by several local authorities including the police force, Saudi Red Crescent, the Ministry of Haj and the Ministry of Transport.
    "This innovative programme aims to engage all the classes of Mecca's youths in the service of visitors to the house of God almighty," said Mohammad Nagro who is in charge of training the youth volunteers.
    More than 2.5 million Muslims from across the world flood Mecca's narrow streets for the annual pilgrimage and volunteers offer assistance to those attempting to navigate their way through the historic city, the birthplace of Islam.
    Visiting pilgrims said the teams of volunteers offered essential support.
    "They are there in the morning and evening and night and day, they have worked so that we wanted for nothing," said Bo Drees, an Algerian pilgrim.
    "We asked where we could catch the bus to go there and the brothers here gave us more than excellent assistance," added Mohammad Orabi, a pilgrim from Egypt.
    The pilgrimage was once the culmination of an arduous desert journey over perilous weeks or months, but with the advent of modern transport, the number of hajis, or pilgrims, has risen to millions, gridlocking the city's roads and compromising safety.
    "Our role is to guide the lost pilgrims and actively deploy around the Grand mosque in groups to guide pilgrims to their hotels and homes, with God's help," said Majed al-Harbi, director of the "Guide the Lost" section of the programme.
    Stampedes, tent fires and other accidents have several times caused hundreds of deaths, forcing the government to spend lavishly on infrastructure.
    Volunteers hope their help in matters ranging from directions to medical assistance can prevent such disasters and secure a safe pilgrimage for all.
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