JEDDAH, 2 January 2006 — Saudi authorities have made massive arrangements for the tedious task of cleaning Makkah and the holy sites of Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifa during the Haj.

“We will send in some 19,000 container trucks in addition to other vehicles and equipment to remove garbage from Mina alone,” said Jamal Bakr Hariri, deputy mayor of Makkah.

He said the municipality would monitor 540 stalls to be opened in Mina for selling foodstuffs and fruits. “We have divided Mina into 22 regions where inspectors will be deployed to check cleanliness and hygienic conditions,” said Hariri.

Nearly 1.3 million foreign pilgrims have so far arrived in the Kingdom to perform Haj, which begins on Jan. 8.

Sheikh Saleh Al-Hussayen, head of the Presidency of the Two Holy Mosques Affairs, yesterday handed over the new kiswa (Kaaba cover) to Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Sheibi, the keeper of the Holy Kaaba, during a ceremony at the Kiswa Factory in Um Al-Joud near Makkah.

The Kaaba will be decorated by the new kiswa on Dul Hijjah 9 (Jan. 9) when pilgrims stand in prayer on the plain of Arafat in the climax of Haj.

During the ceremony, Al-Hussayen explained the history of the kiswa and commended the government’s support to the Kiswa Factory. He said the presidency’s budget last year had reached SR500 million. The new kiswa was manufactured at a cost of SR20 million. A unique work of art, the kiswa is made of black silk and adorned with phrases in praise of Allah. The 14-meter-long cloth has a gilded 95-cm belt along the top containing verses from the Qur’an in Arabic calligraphy within an arabesque frame.

Also yesterday, Haj Minister Fouad Al-Farsy inspected the Haj Terminal at King Abdul Aziz International Airport and urged officials there to extend the best possible services to the guests of God.

He said the General Authority of Civil Aviation had agreed to expand luggage-weighing facilities at the terminal to expedite the return journey of pilgrims. The authority has established two new passenger lounges on the west of the terminal this year to accommodate more pilgrims.

Al-Farsy said Interior Minister and Chairman of the Supreme Haj Committee Prince Naif has instructed authorities to reduce the pilgrims’ waiting time at the airport from eight to six hours to catch their return flights.

He urged all airlines to operate their return Haj flights strictly on schedule to avoid pilgrims getting stranded at the airport.