Makkah News and Updates

28 December 2013

These players have responded to the invitation of a Saudi prince to honor the Algeria only Arab team qualified for the World Cup in Brazil.

In recent days, several pictures of the players of the national team, shaved, and dressed in white clothes, dedicated to Umrah circulate on social networks. And for good reason, invited by the Saudi authorities to make this Muslim ritual, several elements of the national football team, as well as members of staffs, administrative and medical, went to Saudi Arabia. In these photos, it is recognized, among others, binational Ghoulem, Belfodil and Harek and Belkalem, who actualy plays in Portugal.

As a reminder, on December 9 , the Arab Football Union ( UAFA ), which Raouraoua Mohamed, President of the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) is a vice president, said in a statement that the Emir of Arabia Arabia has responded positively to the request of Emir Faisal bin Nawaf, President AFUB to invite players and members of the staffs of the Algerian team to make a visit to Saudi Arabia, affording a passage on the pilgrimage sites. The invitation was extended by Saudi Arabia to "reward " the national team for qualifying for the World Cup. And especially that Algeria is the only Arab team that will compete at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

A second group Algerian international will join the first ten elements of the national team, who performed Umrah.

While some Algerian players have accepted this invitation, some saw a dim view of this strategy, " marketing " , which is to display his religious belief. Media coverage of the religious faith of the players had a problem during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The eve of the biggest football event of the year, the FAF had published on its website pictures of players making the prayer of Tarawihs . It was during the month of Ramadhan.

Source: http://www.algerie-focus.com/blog/20...mpli-une-omra/

29 December 2013

Archaeologists have demanded security for historical sites by posting security personnel. Merely erecting fences around the sites is not enough, they said.

They say that entry to these places should be organized and a guide should be available to explain its importance and history.

According to them, these places have an economic value that should be fully utilized.

Local media monitored some historical places that included Arwa and Quba Palace, west of Madinah. The palace, which was owned by Arwa bin Al-Zubair, is located 3 km from the Prophet’s Mosque. It includes a garden, a water well and a house. It is surrounded by a wall with a beautiful gate made of stone and covered with plaster.

Quba Castle is situated 1,500 meters to the north of Quba Mosque. It is a square shaped building built by military commander Fakhri Pasha alongside a number of castles built around the city to secure them against the Hashemites and their allies, during the period between 1916 and 1919. The castle has three stone floors, with one door and small openings for watchmen and archers.

Dr. Tandeeb Al-Fayidi, historian, said that tampering with these locations is a result of lack of security. These locations used to be affiliated with the Ministry of Education, and they used to have security personnel.

Al-Fayidi demanded strict security for these places. He stressed the importance of opening locations related to the Prophet’s life and ancient archaeological and historical locations to the public.

Ayesha Khaja, researcher and expert on the Prophet’s life, said, “Signboards about these locations should be in various languages. Municipalities should clean and allow organized entry into these places to get an understanding about the importance of these places and benefit from them economically,” she said.

http://www.arabnews.com/news/500161

30 December 2013

The Makkah Municipality has deployed all its resources to welcome Umrah visitors to the Grand Mosque and offer them the best services like healthy environment and amenities for a comfortable stay in the holy city, said Mayor Osama Al-Bar.

A labor force of about 7,000 consisting of supervisors, drivers, sweepers and others has started sanitizing the city against any epidemic. A fleet of 550 garbage trucks is busy round the clock.

The roads are being cleaned and a work force of 3,000 is engaged 24/7 to maintain sanitation. The municipality has fielded 300 electrically operated compressor garbage storage tanks in the holy city to keep unpleasant odor away. These storage tanks are towed away and taken to sites outside Makkah, where the garbage is immediately incinerated.

One hundred teams will spray insecticides in Makkah, especially around the Grand Mosque, to maintain hygiene, Al-Bar said, adding that a team of hundred workers with a fleet of 10 garbage trucks is on stand by to meet any emergency situation.

A team of supervisors survey all shops selling foodstuff. If the team finds any stuff past expiry date it is removed and the shop is fined.

Similarly, all the five butcheries are provided with veterinarians to check the animals before slaughtering and check meat after the animal is slaughtered. The meat shops are kept under continuous surveillance by the inspectors to ensure pure and good supply of meat.

The restaurants and hotels too are checked off and on, and samples of foodstuff are sent to laboratories for checking. These steps are taken to protect the Umrah visitors from food poisoning.

Continuous power supply to the 56 tunnels stretching 30 miles is ensured and roads and bridges are kept under watch to guarantee smooth flow of traffic.

The six parking lots around Makkah are provided with toilets, adequate supply of water for drinking, and mosques for offering prayers, all kept in readiness for the comfort of the Umrah visitors from the Kingdom and from the Gulf countries, said Al-Bar.

http://www.arabnews.com/news/500626 30 December 2013

MAKKAH — The Makkah Municipality has installed 400 solar-powered surveillance cameras in different streets and neighborhoods to monitor its services, said assistant mayor for information technology Dr. Ibrahim Sulaiman. The cameras will allow the municipality to monitor cleaning services, flood problems, light poles and street vendors. They also help in measuring air density. Sulaiman said these advanced cameras are operated by a team of highly-qualified technicians who work around the clock.

http://www.saudigazette.com.sa/index...20131230190956

30 December 2013

Expatriates from neighboring Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries entering into the Kingdom to perform the Umrah pilgrimage in private vehicles are being turned away by Saudi security officials at border posts.

Many Asian and Arab expatriates working in the UAE, Kuwait and Qatar come to the Kingdom to visit religious sites by car since it is more cost-efficient.
A group of expatriate pilgrims in Dubai obtained Umrah visas from the Saudi Consulate in the UAE, but were turned away by Saudi authorities at the border near Hofuf on Thursday night.

Mohammed Rashad Ali, an Indian expatriate living in Dubai, told Arab News on Friday: “We obtained Umrah visas from the Saudi Consulate here, but were not allowed to enter Saudi territory to proceed to Makkah in our own car.”
Ali said that he and his friends and relatives had to return to Dubai while still in “ihram” (attire worn for performing pilgrimage) and booked a Jeddah-bound flight instead.

He said that if they had known of the change in rules, they would have planned accordingly. The tour operator whom they contacted for clarification said that he was “unaware of any such restriction.”

Haj Ministry spokesperson Ali Al-Ghamdi told Arab News that the ministry had not imposed any conditions on the mode of transport to be used by pilgrims coming from GCC countries. “We have no idea if any other ministry or agency has created any such rule,” he added.

The Passport Directorate in the Eastern Province, which shares borders with member GCC countries, however, confirmed that there were some restrictions on expatriate pilgrims arriving by road from GCC countries.

Col. Muala Al-Otaibi, a spokesperson for the Passport Directorate in the Eastern Province, told local media that expatriate pilgrims are not allowed to enter the Kingdom in private vehicles and that the new measures stipulate that modes of transportation be approved by Umrah companies.

There were earlier reports stating that a group of “Bidoun” (Arabic for stateless persons) pilgrims from Kuwait were stopped at the Raqi checkpoint on the Saudi border and were turned away for the same reason.

http://www.arabnews.com/news/500701

 

Old Bab Fatah Area -

between shamiya and permanent mataf

 

In these pics you can see the reinforcement steel

and white covered structure in front of permanent mataf

for future construction Ottoman Area