SAUDI ARABIA: MILLIONS OF PILGRIMS ASSEMBLE ON MOUNT ARAFAT ON LAST DAY OF HAJ PILGRIMAGE
Record ID:
189784
SAUDI ARABIA: MILLIONS OF PILGRIMS ASSEMBLE ON MOUNT ARAFAT ON LAST DAY OF HAJ PILGRIMAGE
- Title: SAUDI ARABIA: MILLIONS OF PILGRIMS ASSEMBLE ON MOUNT ARAFAT ON LAST DAY OF HAJ PILGRIMAGE
- Date: 4th March 2001
- Summary: MOUNT ARAFAT, SAUDI ARABIA (MARCH 4, 2001) (REUTERS) 1. HAS HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PILGRIMS WALKING UP STEPS AS THEY ARRIVE AT MOUNT ARAFAT REGION (3 SHOTS) 0.19 2. HAS PILGRIMS ARRIVING IN BUSES; SCU BABY IN BUS WITH HIS MOTHER, WEARING WHITE SHEETS; SLV/MV PILGRIMS ARRIVING (12 SHOTS) 1.27 3. SCU SIGN INDICATING THE THE BEGINNING OF ARAFAT MOUNTAIN REGION (ALL PILGRIMS SHOULD REMAIN WITHIN IT'S BORDER); SCU PILGRIMS WASHING HANDS (6 SHOTS) 1.51 NEMERA, MOUNT ARAFAT, MECCA, SAUDI ARABIA (MARCH 4, 2001)(REUTERS) 4. MV EXTERIOR OF NEMERA HOSPITAL; SLV HOSPITAL SIGN (2 SHOTS) 1.59 5. MV HOSPITAL CORRIDOR; SCU PILGRIM LYING ON BED AFTER BEING EXPOSED TO SUNSTROKE (4 SHOTS) 2.14 6. (SOUNDBITE)(English) DOCTOR KHALED AL-TAYEB, HEAD OF NEMERA HOSPITAL, SAYING " We did not receive big numbers of patients. Most of the patients come here because they are ill or tired. They take refreshments and then they go away." 2.27 7. SCU PILGRIM IN HOSPITAL BED; MV PILGRIMS ARRIVING AT HOSPITAL BEING TENDED TO (5 SHOTS) 2.49 MOUNT ARAFAT, SAUDI ARABIA (MARCH 4, 2001) (REUTERS) 8. MV PILGRIMS FLOCKING TO ARAFAT MOUNTAIN (6 SHOTS) 3.13 9. (SOUNDBITE) (English) ABU ALABAS, ALGERIAN PILGRIM, SAYING: "Arafat is a great day. I want to congratulate all the Arab and Muslim world in this occasion and I ask God to support the Palestinian people and to bless their martyers." 3.31 NEMERA, MOUNT ARAFAT, SAUDI ARABIA (MARCH 4, 2001) (REUTERS) 10. HAS SEA OF PILGRIMS PERFORMING NOON PRAYERS AT NEMERA MOSQUE (4 SHOTS) 3.58 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 19th March 2001 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: MOUNT ARAFAT, NEAR MECCA, SAUDI ARABIA
- Country: Saudi Arabia
- Reuters ID: LVA5YUPTAN2AXJFJGC221YE6I4TZ
- Story Text: Nearly two million Muslim pilgrims have assembled on
Mount Arafat, offering emotional prayers for mercy on
the last day of the annual haj pilgrimage.
A seemingly endless sea of pilgrims clad in white
started ascending to the tiny barren and rocky plain at
sunrise on Sunday (March 4), as the faithful made their way on
foot and in vehicles from Mena where they had spent the night
in tents or out in the open air.
The vast majority of the pilgrims arrived at the mount by
noon where they would remain until sunset. Many carried
umbrellas to fend off the sun in temperatures of 35 degrees
Celsius (93 Fahrenheit).
As they reached Arafat in waves, the crowds joined voices
in a crescendo chant of the traditional haj call.
"Here I am, oh God, here I am! Thou art without a partner!
Here I am! All praise is for Thee and from Thee are all the
blessings! To Thee alone power and rule belongs!"
The official Saudi Press Agency quoted Mecca governor
Prince Abdul Majid as saying the climb to Mount Arafat was
completed in record time and without incidents.
The haj had been marred in recent years by tragedies,
including fires and stampedes. The authorities have spent
several billion dollars over the past decade to improve the
facilities as well as road and electricity networks.
Doctor Khaled al-Tayeb of Namirah Hospital on Mount Arafat
said the facility received several patients who were suffering
from exhaustion.
"We did not receive big numbers of patients. Most of the
patients come here because they are ill or tired. They take
refreshments and then they go away," he said.
Many pilgrims were reduced to tears as they climbed to the
place where Prophet Mohammad delivered his final sermon 14
centuries ago to declare utter submission to God. Jabal
al-Rahmah (Mercy Mount) hill where Mohammad stood was flooded
by pilgrims.
"Arafat is a great day. I want to congratulate all the
Arab and Muslim world in this occasion and I ask God to
support the Palestinian people and to bless their martyrs,"
Abu Alabas, an Algerian pilgrim said.
Leaving all wealth and material things behind, the
pilgrims in seamless white clothes symbolising purity will ask
throughout the day for salvation and forgiveness. They will
descend the mount after sunset to nearby Muzdalifah, where
they gather pebbles for Monday's ritual stoning of the devil
at Jamarat.
Police helicopters hovered over Mount Arafat as large
numbers of workers struggled to keep the roads clean. Vendors
at makeshift shops along the streets sold fresh fruits and
cold soft drinks.
Saudi authorities distributed a total of 10 million
chilled bottles of mineral water for free throughout the day.
The Arab News local newspaper reported on Saturday that 53
Indian pilgrims had died of natural causes in the days leading
to haj.
Some pilgrims sat in tents listening to lectures on Islam
and Mohammad or read from the Koran while others spent the day
praying in open air.
Official figures showed that 1.36 million Muslims from 160
countries are taking part in the haj this year, 96,000 more
than last year. The pilgrims from outside are joined by about
500,000 worshippers from inside the kingdom, seeking
repentance, purification and spiritual renewal.
The haj, taught by Mohammad to his followers 14 centuries
ago, symbolises the story of Abraham. It is the fifth pillar
of Islam.
King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah where in nearby Mena
to supervise the movement of the pilgrims to Arafat, the most
gruelling leg of the haj. Leaders of Pakistan, Bangladesh,
Indonesia and Sudan are among dignitaries performing the ritual.
Haj is mandatory once in a lifetime for every able-bodied
Muslim who can afford it.
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