Saudi Arabia Completes Security Preparations to Hold Hajj

Saudi Red Crescent Authority volunteers in Makkah. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Red Crescent Authority volunteers in Makkah. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
TT
20

Saudi Arabia Completes Security Preparations to Hold Hajj

Saudi Red Crescent Authority volunteers in Makkah. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Red Crescent Authority volunteers in Makkah. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi authorities announced on Tuesday that they were ready to hold this year’s annual Hajj pilgrimage amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Commander of Hajj Security Forces Maj. Gen. Zayed bin Abdulrahman Al-Tuwayan stressed during a press conference, presented by soldier Abeer al-Rashed, that only people with the necessary permit will be allowed to access the holy sites.

He warned that fines will be immediately imposed on anyone who violates the regulations, urging all sides to cooperate.

Al-Tuwayan stressed the need to comply with preventive measures, warning again that fines await any transgressors.

The security of the Hajj is a red line and any threat will be dealt with according to measures that have been proven effective in the past, he continued.

Moreover, he assured that arrangements are in place to handle any suspected coronavirus infection among the pilgrims. They are part of a plan that considers all possibilities and scenarios and is aimed at curbing any threat that may impede the Hajj and the safety of the pilgrims and workers at the holy sites.

The pilgrims will be received at four points around the holy city of Makkah on the seventh and eighth days of the Hijri month of Dhu al-Hijjah (July 17 and 18). At these points, authorities will begin checking the validity of permits and ensure that other regulations are being followed.

The pilgrims will then be transported to the holy sites.

The Saudi Red Crescent Authority declared it was ready to receive and service the pilgrims. It said it will deploy over 549 medical personnel, including doctors, specialists and EMTs, at 51 emergency centers throughout Makkah, Mina, Muzdalifah and Arafat.



Qatar Urges Israel, Hamas to Seize ‘Window of Opportunity’ for Gaza Truce

Smoke billows after an Israeli strike on Gaza City on June 28, 2025, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
Smoke billows after an Israeli strike on Gaza City on June 28, 2025, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
TT
20

Qatar Urges Israel, Hamas to Seize ‘Window of Opportunity’ for Gaza Truce

Smoke billows after an Israeli strike on Gaza City on June 28, 2025, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)
Smoke billows after an Israeli strike on Gaza City on June 28, 2025, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (Photo by Omar AL-QATTAA / AFP)

Gaza mediators are engaging with Israel and Hamas to build on momentum from this week’s ceasefire with Iran and work towards a truce in the Palestinian territory, Qatar foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said.

In an interview with AFP on Friday, Ansari said Doha -- with fellow Gaza mediators in Washington and Cairo -- was now “trying to use the momentum that was created by the ceasefire between Iran and Israel to restart the talks over Gaza.”

“If we don’t utilize this window of opportunity and this momentum, it’s an opportunity lost amongst many in the near past. We don’t want to see that again,” the spokesman, who is also an adviser to Qatar’s prime minister, said.

US President Donald Trump voiced optimism on Friday about a new ceasefire in Gaza saying an agreement involving Israel and Hamas could come as early as next week.

Mediators have been engaged in months of back-and-forth negotiations with the warring parties aimed at ending 20 months of war in Gaza, with Ansari explaining there were no current talks between the sides but that Qatar was “heavily involved in talking to every side separately.”

A two-month truce, which was agreed as Trump came into office in January, collapsed in March with Israel intensifying military operations in Gaza afterwards.

“We have seen US pressure and what it can accomplish,” Ansari said referring to the January truce which saw dozens of hostages held by Hamas released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

The Qatari official said particularly in the context of US enforcement of the Israel-Iran truce, it was “not a far-fetched idea” that pressure from Washington would achieve a fresh truce in Gaza.

“We are working with them very, very closely to make sure that the right pressure is applied from the international community as a whole, especially from the US, to see both parties at the negotiating table,” Ansari said.