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“Issac the traveler” as he is known on social media has so far walked almost 6,000 km and has now reached Kuwait. But the Spanish traveler of Algerian descent has about 1,356 km to go to reach the holy city of Makkah to perform Umrah. Umrah is a non-mandatory lesser pilgrimage made by Muslims to Makkah, which may be performed at any time of the year. From Paris - Issac’s starting point - the traveler took five months to reach Kuwait, passing through 16 countries. The only device he has with him to help him reach the goal is simply...

Grabbed her out of the wheelchair and pushed her to the sideA Pakistani teacher has described how he saved his wife from a deadly stampede in Saudi Arabia by pulling her from her wheelchair as fellow Haj pilgrims were trampled to death around them. At least 769 people died in a crush of pilgrims near Makkah on Thursday when two large groups converged at a crossroads, in the worst disaster to befall the annual event in a quarter of a century. Alamzeb Khan, 48, and his wife, who was suffering from a high fever, were almost killed when the...

Security men in the sacred Saudi town of Makkah arrested a man wearing strange clothes inside the Grand Mosque, saying his costume detracted worshippers. Many curious men had left their prayers at the mosque and surrounded the man to take a close look at his apparel, prompting the mosque’s security men to intervene. “He was told to go and change his clothes because they are distracting the worshippers from their prayers…he left but returned with the same clothes,” Sada daily. It said police arrested the bearded man for interrogation after he entered the mosque for the second time with the...

A 24-year-old Nigerian who used a steel bar to smash a big lamp at the Grand Mosque in Makkah said he had done so after smelling a good scent. The man told police that he had gone to the Mosque to pray after having a heated argument with his family. “I was at the Mosque when an old man and a woman passed by and pushed me…I got mad because of this…moments later, I smelt a good scent which made me more mad and pushed me to attack the lamps,” he said, quoted by Makkah newspaper. It quoted police sources...

A mentally ill African man claiming to be Jesus Christ mounted a wall at the Grand Mosque in the western Saudi town of Makkah and smashed a lamp before he was captured by security men, newspapers reported on Thursday. The man had managed to sneak into the Mosque through thousands of Moslem pilgrims and climbed the wall before attacking a lamp and smashing part of it. “We arrested the man…he was not under the influence of drugs or alcohol as some social networks say…he is mentally ill as he claimed to be Jesus Christ,” said Major Ge

A visiting Pakistani-American radio journalist has commended Saudi Arabia for the successful organization of this year’s Haj. Qamar Abbas Jafri of Voice of America’s Urdu Service described Saudi efforts “as a job well done.” Jafri was among 200 international journalists invited by the Ministry of Culture and Information to perform Haj and report on it. “I performed Haj and did a number of reports from the holy sites,” he told Arab News on Friday before heading back to Washington, D.C. “I am really impressed; it is a wonderful experience to be here.” Jafri said this was his second Haj. “I...

MAKKAH: A Saudi woman who is seeking a divorce from her husband has claimed that a judge has refused to listen to her complaints at five scheduled hearings because she came to court without a male legal guardian each time. “The court at Al-Jumoum outside Makkah city set five hearings in my case, but each time I went the judge refused to see me or listen to my case because I had no male guardian with me,” said the woman, Um Hasan. She and her estranged husband have been married for 17 years during which time they have had six...

Prince Abdul-Majid bin Abdul-Aziz, the governor of the Islam's holy city of Mecca, died Saturday after a long illness, a Saudi Arabian royal statement said. He was 65. Abdul-Majid, who was the half brother of Saudi King Abdullah, was flown to the United States where he died after sudden health deterioration, the statement said. The brief statement did not provide any other details about the cause of death or say exactly where the prince died in the U.S. It said he had undergone a surgery earlier and had traveled back to Saudi Arabia, but was flown back to the...

As a silver member of "Hilton HHonors," I receive the odd discount from the hotel chain but today's offer really caught my eye. It was not to swing in Las Vegas or spend April in Paris, but to go on pilgrimage to Mecca. I've posted the webpage here. Some salient excerpts: Between February 1 and March 31, 2007, GCC nationals who stay a minimum of two consecutive nights at the Makkah Hilton & Towers earn double Hilton HHonors® Base points. Please note: During this period, Makkah is accessible only to Muslims and visas are issued to nationals of Bahrain, Oman,...

MAKKAH, 28 August 2006 — Walking through the area of Hosh Bakr behind the Al-Mansour Street of Makkah, you could easily think you were in Africa. The disarray of a developing country is found here in this wide plaza nestled among the un-zoned residential neighborhoods in the hills that surround this holy city. Nearly everyone here is of African origin. There are many undocumented migrants and overstayers here. It is a common perception among residents of Makkah that Hosh Bakr is where a lot of illegal activity occurs. The area is known for its black market. Should you have the...

For Muslims, it's a high-tech call to prayer. A new cellular telephone generates five automated reminders a day at prayer time and points Muslims in the direction of Mecca. It also contains a copy of the Islamic holy book, the Quran, in both Arabic and English.

Q. Some people argue that preventing non-Muslims from visiting Makkah and Madinah deprives them of a chance to be impressed with Islam. Some say that they could be informed of the protocols they have to observe and allowed to visit the two mosques. After all, Islam is very tolerant in its attitude to other faiths. Please comment. Muhammad Asif A. That Islam is tolerant is beyond doubt. But tolerance and kind treatment of the followers of other faiths does not mean contravening the rules of our religion. The question of prohibiting entry of non-Muslims into Makkah and Madinah is not...

KUWAIT CITY (Agencies): Scores of Kuwaitis, including an Islamic culture instructor at the Saad Al-Abdullah Academy for Security Sciences, were recently rounded up by Saudi authorities in the wake of the Riyadh blasts on May 12, a newspaper reported Sunday. Al-Watan quoted Kuwaiti security sources as saying the Saudi authorities are questioning a number of Kuwaitis on their alleged involvement with al-Qaeda organisation. They said tens of Kuwaitis being interrogated include a Kuwaiti instructor, identified only as M.S., who went missing late last month, and entered Saudi Arabia without an exit record at any Kuwaiti border post. Saudi authorities suspecting...

Even as you read these words, a time bomb is ticking away in the holy city of Makkah. The question is not "if" it will explode but "when". The bomb I am speaking of, for those who want to know, is the large number of Africans in the city; they are there illegally and as they encroach on the city and its facilities, they have become a public menace. They show no respect for the law whatsoever. They make it plain that all they care about is making money — and by whatever means is available to them. They multiply...