MINA, 20 December 2007 — This year’s Haj has been described as “most successful” because the nearly three million pilgrims completed their rituals so far in a peaceful and secure atmosphere. They stoned Jamrat Al-Aqaba in Mina, slaughtered sacrificial animals and performed Tawaf Al-Ifadha yesterday.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah yesterday received the commanders of Haj security forces and commended their services in order to make the event, the largest gathering of Muslims in the world, a resounding success. He also noted the efforts and sacrifices made by Saudi security forces in confronting terrorists.

“Every soldier is a symbol of sacrifice and you represent the shield of this nation — after God — in times of war and peace,” the king told the officers who came to greet him on the occasion of Eid Al-Adha.

King Abdullah described the terrorists as traitors and the security forces as heroes. “We’ll never forget your sacrifices in confronting terrorists ... your Kingdom will remain as a nation with a message while the deviant criminals will vanish without a trace,” the Saudi Press Agency quoted the king as saying.

Haj Minister Dr. Fouad Al-Farsy said this year’s Haj operation was the best ever in terms of organization and security. “We are honored to serve the guests of God,” the minister said. “Until today, everything related to Haj has gone smoothly as planned,” he added.

According to an official report issued by the General Statistics Department, 2,454,325 pilgrims performed Haj this year. This number includes 1,707,814 pilgrims who came from 181 countries and 746,511 from within the Kingdom. A large number of overstaying Umrah pilgrims also joined the Haj to further boost the final, unknowable count.

The pilgrims performed with relative ease the most potentially dangerous Haj ritual: the symbolic stoning of the devil. “Everything went according to plan and we have had no untoward incident at the Jamrat,” said Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki.

“The arrangements were excellent and great care was taken to avoid the massing of pilgrims on the Jamrat Bridge which has been a scene of tragedy on numerous occasions in the past,” he told a press conference.

Helicopters hovered constantly overhead to monitor the huge crowds; they were assisted by hundreds of high-tech cameras, all connected to a control room run by security authorities.

The pilgrims began their trek from Muzdalifah back to Mina early yesterday morning. Those with permits and proper accommodation facilities in Mina went straight back to their camps and emerged later in groups to complete the stoning ritual. Pilgrims without permits, however, had a tough time. They were not allowed to carry their baggage to the Jamrat complex.

“We have learned our lesson. One of the major causes of tragedies at the Jamrat Bridge in the past has been the luggage that pilgrims carried with them onto the bridge. They are unable to withstand the pressure on the bridge and they then dump their luggage in the middle. This then becomes a death trap. If one pilgrim trips, it leads to a domino effect and then everything goes wrong,” explained Al-Turki. “We took no chances this time. We will never again allow pilgrims to carry luggage to the Jamrat plaza,” he said.

According to Al-Turki, the luggage problem arose because some pilgrims had no accommodation in Mina. “If they had come through proper channels, they would have had proper tents to keep their belongings in,” he said, adding that all pilgrim establishments and Haj missions were informed of this year’s plan.

Chaotic scenes were seen earlier in the day when security forces insisted that pilgrims leave their bags behind before proceeding to perform the stoning ritual. At one of the roads leading to the Jamrat, policemen were shouting: “Leave your luggage here; you can’t take it with you.”

Some pilgrims, however, refused to listen. They tried in vain to hold on to their belongings. “All my documents are in my bag. How can I just leave it here? How am I going to find my bag again?” said Zahra Sadiq, a South Asian pilgrim who refused to move on without her luggage. Security forces explained to her that the rules had been made for her safety and that of all other pilgrims. “Perform the stoning and then come back to get your baggage. Nobody is going to take it away.”

Talking to Arab News, one police officer, Saad Al-Ghamdi, admitted that pilgrims were frustrated.” But we have very strict instructions not to allow any baggage onto the platform.”

The stoning ritual takes place at the site where Satan appeared to Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him), his wife Hager and son Ismail. Ibrahim and his family each threw seven stones at Satan. The gesture has been perpetuated, and Muslims must perform it in order to complete the Haj.

Many arrived in Mina for the pebble-throwing ritual with swollen feet and sore legs after walking some 20 kilometers, stopping for a few hours of sleep on the rough terrain of Muzdalifah, where they collected at least 49 pebbles to stone at the Jamrat in Mina.

They were coming from the Plains of Arafat, where the Haj reached its climax on Tuesday with the faithful spending the whole day in prayer, meditation and introspection. After performing the three main duties yesterday the male pilgrims took off the two pieces of white cloth they put on when they went into a state of ritual purity on Monday morning.

Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, who is chairman of the Central Haj Committee, also declared that the movement of pilgrims from Arafat to Mina via Muzdalifah had been completed smoothly without any accident. He said the new projects implemented by the government in the holy places had played a big role in facilitating Haj traffic.

The Saudi authorities have made the stoning ritual much easier compared to previous years with the construction of the SR4.2-billion Jamrat Bridge expansion (which is set for completion next year) to ensure the smooth flow of pilgrims. Security forces assisted the pilgrims and organized their movements on the Jamrat Bridge to make it smooth and incident-free.

The stoning will be repeated today and tomorrow when the Haj draws to a close. Watched by guards and policemen, pilgrims were directed to approach the stoning site in orderly groups in order to avoid disasters.

The faithful were relieved at having performed their religious duties in relative comfort. The authorities were also relieved since in the past the ritual was sometimes marked by tragedies, causing the deaths of pilgrims.

Indian and Pakistani Haj missions described yesterday’s stoning ritual as extraordinarily smooth. They welcomed the security crackdown on the carrying of luggage to Jamrat. “We welcome the move. We have always asked for this. Luggage on the bridge has always been a disaster,” said Indian Consul General Dr. Ausaf Sayeed. “Our pilgrims performed the ritual in record time. We have had no problem.”

He said, however, that not all pilgrims who had their luggage seized on the way to Jamrat were without permits. “Some were legal pilgrims who had missed the bus from Muzdalifah to Mina and had therefore gone straight to the bridge. All those who got on the buses came straight to the camps,” he said.

Pakistan’s Director of Haj, Behrullah Hazarvi, said the arrangements were excellent. “We had directed all our pilgrims to come back to the camps in Mina from Muzdalifah before going to Jamrat. Most of our pilgrims stuck to the program and had no difficulties,” he said.

Haj Minister Al-Farsy said Saudi authorities would deal firmly with unfair pilgrim service agents by imposing tough punishments. “We show no leniency to domestic Haj service companies that cheat pilgrims,” he said.

— With reports by Samir Al-Saadi, Siraj Wahab, Badea Abu Al-Naja, Ali Hawash, Syed Faisal Ali and Galal Fakkar