ZUL-HAJJ 9 1430 A.H.
THURSDAY NOVEMBER . 26 2009.
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Hajj: 2.5m pilgrims for Arafat today
From MUH'D HAMISU ABDULLAHI, Makkah
TODAY, Thursday, Dhul-Hijjah 9, 1430 AH, equivalent to November 26, 2009, marks the Arafat Day.
Muslims from many countries of the world gather today in a dignified manner reciting the praises of Allah and offering various supplications to Him with their hands raised, in accordance with the practice of Prophet Muhammad, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him.
The whole plain of Arafat is full to the brim from the early hours of the day as 2.5 million pilgrims from within and outside Saudi Arabia take part.
Estimated foreign pilgrims gathering on the plain of Arafat are two million while Saudi Arabia itself has 500,000.
The biggest Hajj contingent is from Indonesia with a total of 200,000, while India is second with 164,000 number of pilgrims.
The third, is Pakistan, which has about 140,000 pilgrims and Nigeria, which is not left out in this year's Hajj rituals, has a total of about 90,000 pilgrims to include international ones.
Similarly, Saudi Arabia is deploying some 100,000 security forces in and around Makkah, Madina and Jeddah for the Hajj exercise.
From a massive command centers, the forces monitor thousands of CCTV cameras, including 1,852 in and around Makkah's Grand Mosque and 600 at the Jamrat
Bridge where pilgrims stone the devil tomorrow(Friday), next tomorrow(Saturday) and finish on Sunday.
Health personnel have also been increased this year to 20,000 to cope with the threat of swine flu in addition to other health worries.
In another development,, the Grand Mosque at the center of Makkah where pilgrims gather to pray covers 39 hectares (96 acres) and can hold more than one million people.
The Ka'aba rests on a marble base and is built from granite, and has a door made from 280 kilos (616 pounds) of pure gold.
Its black silk kiswa covering, made anew every year, is embroidered with phrases from the Glorious Qur'an using 150 kilos (330 pounds) gold and silver thread.
