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31 October 2011
TAIF — State of the art helicopters will help ensure the safety of pilgrims during this year’s Haj. The helicopters which took off from King Fahd Airbase in Taif on Friday will monitor pilgrim flow and be ready to evacuate any injured pilgrims.
“Air surveillance over the holy sites will be round-the-clock and will monitor the movement of pilgrims and ensure the smooth flow of traffic,” said Maj. Gen. Muhammad Bin Eid Al-Harbi, Head of aviation security.
“The aircraft logged record flight hours during the flood crisis in Jeddah proving they can deal with the most difficult of situations,” he added.
Al-Harbi said during last Ramadan the aircraft successfully relayed photographs of the Umrah pilgrims from Makkah to the operations room of the general security in Mina. “This experiment will be repeated during the Haj seasons,” he said.
Under the security plans aircraft will relay photographs of pilgrims to a general security operations room in Mina. It is hoped that this could prevent a repeat of the 2006 crush when at least 350 pilgrims died.
Many of the 19 aircraft have facilities like monitoring of ECG and artificial breathing apparatus. They are also being manned by doctors and nurses who will provide first aid to sick pilgrims until they are transported to hospitals, he said.
Maj. Pilot Abdullah Bin Muhammad Homan Al-Qarni, Assistant Commander of King Fahd Airbase, said the aim was to provide security by countering any hazards that might affect pilgrims from the moment of their arrival, the performance of Haj rites until their departure from the holy sites.
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...20111031111436
01 November 2011
RIYADH — The anti-terror Special Security Force will deploy 3,500 personnel and 450 armed vehicles, equipped with the latest technical and security technology, at the holy sites during this year’s Haj, said Lt. Gen. Muhammad Bin Hamad Al-Omani, Commander of the forces.
The division has been at the forefront of tackling the menace of terrorism in the Kingdom. Its members are constantly undergoing training under the direct and personal supervision of Prince Muhammad Bin Naif, Assistant Minister of Interior for Security Affairs.
Within the general plan for Haj security that was approved by Crown Prince Naif Bin Abdul Aziz, Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, Al-Omani said, the special task force has completed all preparations to provide the highest level of security for pilgrims and facilitate their performance of rituals in ease and comfort.
The Special Force has the ability to execute high-level domestic operations quickly and to serve as backup for other security agencies. The members of the highly-qualified division are trained to disable and remove bombs, confront piracy, tackle situations, such as hostage-taking, and provide security for VIPs.
Al-Omani said that members of the Special Force take part in drills and exercises in various geographical areas including mountainous terrain, open areas and urban centers.
The Special Force has several units including a bomb squad, security and protection, airplane security, VIP protection, embassy security force (inside and outside the Kingdom) and two units deployed permanently in Makkah and Riyadh.
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...20111101111495
1 November 2011
MAKKAH – Makkah schools will be used as shelters in the event of any emergency during the Haj season. The tactic forms part of a sweeping emergency plan drawn up by authorities to deal with any threat to pilgrims.
Altogether Haj security plans have detailed 40 sorting locations for medical evacuation at Al-Jamarat Bridge. These include six buildings in the “experimental housing” project, tent camps in Al-Mu’aissim, Arafat, and Muzdalifa and 33 seasonal units leading into Makkah.
“We are ready to cope with all probable hazards including that of flood. Monitoring systems, data processing and Geographic Information Systems will be used to analyze all potential threats,” said Maj. Gen. Adel Zamzami, Director of Civil Defense in Makkah region, Al-Watan newspaper reported.
Haj plans will also see heightened safety measures at King Abdul Aziz International Airport and the residences of Haj pilgrims. The Civil Defense in Makkah region will work with authorities to receive pilgrims and ensure their safety.
http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...20111101111502
Nov 01, 2011
(Reuters) - Adalet Gigek sat impatiently in a crowded hotel lobby, waiting for the minibus to take her to Mecca's Grand Mosque for noon prayers as millions of Muslims started arriving in Saudi Arabia before the annual haj pilgrimage which starts Friday.
She has spent five years hoping for the chance to fulfil her duty as a Muslim by performing haj and knows she will not be allowed to go again because pilgrim numbers are strictly controlled to prevent overcrowding.
"Each year for the past five years I checked with the authorities," said the 66-year-old mother of eight, a rosy pink scarf framing her beaming face. "When I finally found out I was selected I soared with happiness."
As one of Islam's five pillars, the haj is enjoined on all Muslims who are physically able to carry it out, but this year the pilgrimage follows uprisings across the Arab world and growing tensions between Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite power Iran.
Home to Islam's holiest sites, Saudi Arabia regards itself as the guardian of Islam and assumes the responsibility of maintaining a peaceful haj season when Muslims from various sects gather at the same place and time.
Although haj starts on the eighth day of the lunar month of Dhul Hijja, which falls this year Friday, November 4, most pilgrims come earlier to visit the holy mosques in Mecca and nearby Medina, where the prophet Muhammad was buried over 1,400 years ago.
Over 1.5 million pilgrims have arrived in the Mecca region so far and Saudi authorities have spent freely to avoid any repeat of the deadly incidents which marred haj seasons in the past such as fires, hotel collapses, police clashes with protesters and stampedes.
TURBULENT YEAR
In a turbulent year for the Middle East, Saudi Arabia avoided the sort of protests which swept across the Arab world, toppling leaders in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and leading to violent uprisings in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain.
King Abdullah instead offered support to allies who faced popular revolts and averted any similar protests inside Saudi Arabia with a ban on demonstrations and spending of $130 billion on housing and other social benefits.
"Allah did not intend haj to be a place for dispute, haggling... or using it for political agendas or preaching grim sectarianism," Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti, Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Shaikh, said last week.
Riyadh fears Iran is behind an uprising by neighbouring Bahrain's majority Shi'ite population against a Sunni monarchy. It also said that a violent protest early this month by members of its own Shi'ite minority had been instigated by a "foreign power," widely interpreted as code for Iran.
Earlier this month, the United States said two Iranians had plotted to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington with support from Tehran. Iran has denied the charges.
In 1987 clashes between Iranian pilgrims and Saudi security forces led to the deaths of hundreds of people.
During haj, Saudi religious police patrol the holy cities to ensure pilgrims are worshipping in the manner prescribed by the Gulf monarchy's strict interpretation of Islam.
"In terms of the government's security and services, all is good. The problem is only with the (religious police), they bother us while worshiping," said a turbaned Shi'ite cleric from Iraq.
"While I was praying one of (them) forced my hand open to confiscate a napkin because he thought I was hiding dirt in it to pray on it... as the Shi'ite tradition calls for," the man said, adding that some of his religious books were also confiscated.
In a separate incident, a Canadian Shi'ite cleric was arrested and later released in Medina after a skirmish with the religious police.
Saudi Arabia says it does not discriminate against Shi'ites.
PILGRIMAGE
To forestall any repeat of incidents such as the 2006 stampede in which hundreds of pilgrims died, the Saudi authorities have lavished vast sums to expand the main haj sites and improve Mecca's transportation system.
The Grand Mosque is the main attraction for over 6 million pilgrims who enter Mecca throughout the year, of which 2.5 million-3 million pilgrims are expected during the haj.
An expansion project will raise the mosque's capacity to allow it to hold 2 million pilgrims and install pedestrian bridges.
The area of Mecca around the Grand Mosque is also being transformed, as high-rise buildings are put up to cater for the large influx of visitors.
This month, the pilgrims will have full access to a $1.8 billion (£1.12 billion) railway, which was launched at only 30 percent of its capacity last year, to ease pilgrim transport between holy sites around Mecca.
Among the rites they must perform during the three-day pilgrimage, hajis must walk seven times around the Kaaba, the cube-shaped building at the centre of the Grand Mosque, pray at nearby Mount Arafat and ritually stone the devil by hurling pebbles at three walls.
Gigek, the Turkish pilgrim, is relishing an opportunity that has cost her more than 2,700 euros (£2.333) as well as her long wait.
"Many are still waiting for their chance," she said. "I know this will not happen again."
http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/1...79U4OF20111031
By MUHAMMAD AL-SULAMI | ARAB NEWS
Published: Nov 1, 2011 15:01 Updated: Nov 1, 2011 17:29
JEDDAH: Two pilgrims, a man and a woman, died when a bus carrying 29 British and Pakistani pilgrims on their way from Madinah to Makkah caught fire near Al-Tahliya flyover in Jeddah on Tueday, the Civil Defense announced.
Lt. Col. Abdullah Al-Amri, spokesman of the Civil Defense, told Arab News that investigations were still under way to determine the cause of the fire. He said the driver saw smoke billowing out of the engine so he stopped it and the passengers started to disembark.
The spokesman said the results of the investigations would be announced as soon as they were completed.
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article527348.ece
This cannot be undone and I am sure it will be greatly appreciated.
Please wait...
