Mina Prepares to Bid Pilgrims Farewell after Successful, Exceptional Hajj Season

 Pilgrims praying after stoning the devil at Mina’s Jamarat site (AP)
Pilgrims praying after stoning the devil at Mina’s Jamarat site (AP)
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Mina Prepares to Bid Pilgrims Farewell after Successful, Exceptional Hajj Season

 Pilgrims praying after stoning the devil at Mina’s Jamarat site (AP)
Pilgrims praying after stoning the devil at Mina’s Jamarat site (AP)

As the sun sets on the second day of the Tashriq days, which follow the Eid al-Adha holiday, the holy site of Mina prepares to bid farewell to Hajj pilgrims headed to Makkah to perform the final rite of their spiritual journey.

On the second day of Eid and the first day of the Tashriq days, Hajj pilgrims had carried out the stoning of the devil ritual at Mina’s Jamarat site.

The visitors of the holy sites were given the pebbles to throw at the three walls in a disinfected bag as part of the coronavirus preventive measures.

Pilgrims were then transported out of Jamarat according to a highly detailed plan that focuses on preventative health measures that ensure their safety.

Colored tracks, floor stickers, and guiding posters aided pilgrims in easily flowing in and out of the site under close supervision from civil and security authorities helping organize this year’s Hajj pilgrimage.

Jamarat is considered one of the key sites in Mina, and is comprised of five 12-meter stories that are fully serviced to ensure enough room for pilgrims to perform their rites at ease.

After leaving Jamarat, pilgrims headed back to their camps at Mina, commonly known as the City of Tents, where they would start preparing for the final stop in their pilgrimage journey.

This includes performing the last Tawaaf (floating around the Kabah seven times) in Makkah, which is part of a series of ritual acts that must be performed during Hajj.

As for emergencies reported during this year’s Hajj, the Saudi Red Crescent Authority’s land and air ambulance teams received more than 11,000 phone calls between July 17-20 and filed 1,893 emergency reports in the holy city and holy sites.

Ambulance teams stationed in Makkah city and holy sites responded to 1,269 medical and injury cases. Out of the total cases, 602 were transferred to hospitals, and 649 were attended to on the spot.

Statistic reports of the Authority show that during the last four days, a total of 979 medical and 177 injury cases were attended to by its teams.

The central Makkah city recorded the highest number of emergency cases with 755, out of which 37 of them were reported in the Grand Mosque, 274 in Mina, and 198 cases each in Arafat and Muzdalifah.



Saudi Arabia Welcomes Ceasefire in Lebanon

 A resident walks amid the destruction in the southern Lebanese village of Zibqin on November 27, 2024, as people who had fled the war between Israel and Hezbollah returned to check on their homes after a ceasefire between the warring sides took effect. (AFP)
A resident walks amid the destruction in the southern Lebanese village of Zibqin on November 27, 2024, as people who had fled the war between Israel and Hezbollah returned to check on their homes after a ceasefire between the warring sides took effect. (AFP)
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Saudi Arabia Welcomes Ceasefire in Lebanon

 A resident walks amid the destruction in the southern Lebanese village of Zibqin on November 27, 2024, as people who had fled the war between Israel and Hezbollah returned to check on their homes after a ceasefire between the warring sides took effect. (AFP)
A resident walks amid the destruction in the southern Lebanese village of Zibqin on November 27, 2024, as people who had fled the war between Israel and Hezbollah returned to check on their homes after a ceasefire between the warring sides took effect. (AFP)

Saudi Arabia welcomed on Wednesday the ceasefire in Lebanon, hailing the international efforts that helped achieve it.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry hoped the ceasefire would lead to the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, preserve Lebanon’s sovereignty, security and stability, and ensure the safe return of the displaced to their homes.

The Muslim World League (MWL) welcomed the ceasefire, commending all efforts that contributed to ending the conflict and expressed its hope for continued security and stability for Lebanon and its people under its national sovereignty.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation stressed the need for all parties to commit to the ceasefire agreement through the full implementation of Resolution 1701.

OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha underscored his full support for Lebanon’s stability and the right of its state to exercise its sovereignty across all Lebanese territories.

He called for humanitarian aid to meet the needs of those affected and for reconstructing what was destroyed in the war.

Moreover, he hoped that the ceasefire in Lebanon would pave the way for an immediate halt to the Israeli assault on Gaza and all occupied Palestinian territories.