Earth Science News
ABOUT US
Crowds 'stone the devil' in final hajj ritual
Crowds 'stone the devil' in final hajj ritual
By Haitham El-Tabei
Mina, Saudi Arabia (AFP) June 28, 2023

Massive crowds of robed Muslims gathered for the "stoning of the devil" ritual in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday as the biggest hajj pilgrimage since the pandemic draws to a close.

From dawn, hundreds of thousands of worshippers began pelting pebbles at three concrete monoliths representing Satan, the last major ritual of an event held in severe summer heat.

The pilgrims flocked to Mina, near Mecca, a day after enduring temperatures of 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees Fahrenheit) as they prayed for hours on Mount Arafat.

"I will not think of doing hajj again until it takes place in winter," Farah, a 26-year-old Tunisian, said of the annual ritual which follows the lunar calendar and doesn't always coincide with summer.

"My body is melting," she said.

More than 1.8 million pilgrims, most of them from abroad, joined the first hajj with unrestricted numbers since pre-Covid in 2019, when 2.5 million took part.

The attendance figure, announced by Saudi officials on Tuesday, falls well short of their predictions of beating the 2019 record.

The hajj is a source of prestige and a major revenue-earner for Saudi Arabia, which is trying to pivot its oil-reliant economy in new directions including tourism.

The devil-stoning marks the start of the three-day Eid al-Adha holiday, celebrated by Muslims by buying and slaughtering livestock to commemorate Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son.

Afterwards, the pilgrims return to Mecca to perform a farewell "tawaf" -- walking seven times around the Kaaba, the giant black cube at the Grand Mosque that is the focal point of Islam.

- Deadly stampedes -

Mina's walkways have proven deadly in the past: in 2015, a stampede killed up to 2,300 worshippers in the worst hajj disaster ever. A similar incident killed 364 in 2006.

Other stampedes were reported in 2004, 1998 and 1994. In 1990, the failure of a tunnel ventilation system triggered a huge rush that killed 1,426 pilgrims, mainly from Asia.

There have been no major incidents since 2015, and the site has been extensively remodelled with a multi-storey bridge to allow the pilgrims to access the monoliths safely.

On Wednesday, helicopters buzzed overhead and hundreds of police officers fanned out across Mina's roads to organise the flow of worshippers.

As well as the crowds, scorching conditions have been a major challenge for the worshippers from 160 countries, including many elderly after a maximum age limit was scrapped.

In recent years the hajj has coincided with the Saudi summer, compounded by global warming that has made the desert climate even hotter.

Tuesday's peak of 48 degrees Celsius made it the hottest day at this year's hajj. Experts have warned that temperatures of 50 degrees could become an annual occurrence in Saudi Arabia by the end of the century.

To protect themselves from the heat, many pilgrims walk with umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun, while others carry their folded prayer blankets above their heads.

More than 32,000 health workers are on hand to treat anyone struck by heatstroke or other ailments, authorities say, while bottles of water are being distributed free of charge.

On his way out of Arafat on Tuesday, Egyptian employee Sobhi Saeed, 56, said he was fulfilled but drained as the hajj winds down.

"I am very exhausted. I feel very dehydrated."

The hajj started on Sunday at Mecca's Grand Mosque, Islam's holiest site, before an overnight stay in tents and then the prayers on Mount Arafat, where the Prophet Mohammed is believed to have delivered his final sermon.

Related Links
All About Human Beings and How We Got To Be Here

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
ABOUT US
Humans' evolutionary relatives butchered one another 1.45 million years ago
Washington DC (SPX) Jun 27, 2023
Researchers from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History have identified the oldest decisive evidence of humans' close evolutionary relatives butchering and likely eating one another. In a new study published in Scientific Reports, National Museum of Natural History paleoanthropologist Briana Pobiner and her co-authors describe nine cut marks on a 1.45 million-year-old left shin bone from a relative of Homo sapiens found in northern Kenya. Analysis of 3D models of the fossil's surface ... read more

ABOUT US
Kherson residents return to flood-ruined homes after dam destroyed

'We only have this planet': Barbados PM urges unified climate finance response

US, EU, UK pledge additional aid at Ukraine Recovery Conference in London

Facing housing crunch, Toronto cuts into once-protected lands

ABOUT US
Unveiling the secrets of liquid iron under extreme conditions

Hong Kong high-rise aims to become 'village' of the dead

Surprise! Weaker bonds can make polymers stronger

Mitsubishi Electric demonstrates light source module for high-capacity laser links

ABOUT US
Every 1C of warming means 15% more extreme rain, researchers say

Swiss want moratorium on deep-sea mining

Study of deep-sea corals reveals ocean currents have not fuelled rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide

Govt mulls rescue of UK's biggest water supplier

ABOUT US
Russia, China block move for new Antarctic marine reserves

Antarctic ice shelves experienced only minor changes in surface melt since 1980

Sustainability at centre of British polar science strategy

Himalayan glaciers melting 65 percent faster than previous decade: study

ABOUT US
Turning over a new leaf, Colombian ranchers plant trees

Israel enlists drones, AI and big data to farm for the future

Buzz off: wasps wreak havoc on Albania's chestnuts

Got weeds? US environmentalists call in the G.O.A.T.s

ABOUT US
19 dead, thousands seek shelter in South Asia monsoon floods

Tonga Hunga eruption produced the most intense lightning ever recorded

Cyclone leaves 11 dead, 20 missing in southern Brazil

Cyclone leaves 13 dead in Brazil

ABOUT US
UN vote to end Mali peacekeeping mission delayed

Air strikes, artillery, killings in Sudan as aid stalls

UN calls for help for 'traumatized, hungry' Somalis

Zambia creditors agree to restructure debt

ABOUT US
Living near green space makes you 2.5 years younger: study

Humans' evolutionary relatives butchered one another 1.45 million years ago

Beatboxing orangutans and the evolution of speech

Crowds 'stone the devil' in final hajj ritual

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.