(Mount Arafat) A sea of worshipers descended on Mount Arafat in western Saudi Arabia on Saturday, where around 1.8 million Muslims are performing the great pilgrimage in extreme heat.
Pilgrims spent the day reciting the Quran and praying on this 230-foot-high hill near Mecca, where the Prophet Muhammad is said to have delivered his last sermon.
“It’s the most important day,” said Mohamed Asser, a 46-year-old Egyptian pilgrim, saying he had a list of people who had asked him to pray for them.
“I also prayed for the Palestinians. May God help them,” he added.
The pilgrimage is taking place this year in the shadow of the war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The Hajj Minister, Tawfiq al-Rabiah, warned that no political slogans would be tolerated, but that did not stop a pilgrim from chanting his support for the Palestinians, who have been bombarded for more than eight months in the besieged territory.
“Pray for our brothers in Palestine, in Gaza […] May God give victory to the Muslims,” he said.
Some 2,000 Palestinians, half of whom are family members of victims in Gaza, were invited this year by King Salman for the pilgrimage, which takes place over several days in and around Mecca.
After spending the night in tents in Mina, pilgrims in Arafat faced the scorching summer sun in the Gulf kingdom, one of the hottest regions in the world, and temperatures that reached 46 degrees Celsius, according to the Saudi Meteorological Center.
Hats being prohibited for men during the rituals, many carried parasols, while others tried to cool off in the rare shaded areas of the site or under giant misters.
To prevent heatstroke, especially among the elderly, the Saudi authorities have called on pilgrims to protect themselves from the sun and drink regularly.
Arriving early in the morning at Mount Arafat, Ahmad Karim Abdelsalam, a 33-year-old Indian, found the idea of spending the whole day there “a little scary”.
“But God willing, everything will be fine,” he added.
The hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. All Muslims are expected to perform it at least once in their life if they have the means. Visas to Mecca are granted based on country quotas.
After waiting four years to realize her dream, Libyan Nouria Abdou struggled to hold back tears of emotion: “It’s so difficult to get here.”
Lying on the ground a little far away, Abdelrahman Siyam, a 55-year-old Iraqi, took a well-deserved rest after walking a lot, despite his prosthetic leg.
At sunset, the faithful will go to Muzdalifah, still near Mecca, where they will sleep under the stars and collect stones which will allow them to carry out the symbolic “stoning of the devil” on Sunday.
They will also celebrate Eid al-Adha (feast of sacrifice) observed by Muslims around the world on Sunday.
In addition to the 1.8 million pilgrims for the hajj, Saudi Arabia welcomed 13.5 million faithful for the umrah in 2023, the small pilgrimage that can be done all year round, and aims to reach 30 million by 2030.
