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Saudi
Mufti Slams Israel's "Terrorism" As Hajj Reaches Climax
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| Pilgrims on their way to
Mount Arafat |
ARAFAT,
Saudi Arabia, Feb. 21 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Saudi Arabia's Grand
Mufti slammed Israel's terrorism against the Palestinians, as more than two
million Muslim pilgrims from across the world poured into the plains of Mount
Arafat Thursday for the climax of the annual Hajj.
In
a sermon to pilgrims assembled on Mount Arafat near Mecca, Mufti, Sheikh Abdul
Aziz al-Sheikh, denounced Israel's military escalation against the Palestinians
calling it "injustice, aggression and terrorism." The sermon was
broadcast live on Saudi State television, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
Referring
to the mounting Israeli aggessions in the Palestinian territories, the Mufti
condemned "the killing of unarmed Muslims ... in Palestine."
The
Grand Mufti defended Islam against terrorism charges made in the West in the
wake of the September 11 attacks on the United States.
"It
is unfair to associate Islam with terrorism," Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh
said. "Terrorism equals tyranny and injustice, and these are alien to
Islam."
"How
can terrorism be linked to a religion which orders respect for human life ... [a
religion which advocates] justice and promotes peace rather than war?"
Sheikh Abdul Aziz asked.
It is utterly "unfair to attribute terrorism to Islam," the Saudi
Mufti told the pilgrims assembled on Mount Arafat.
Sheikh
Abdul Aziz, who went on to urge the world's 1.3 billion Muslims to adhere to
their religion, was responding to Western allegations that Islam breeds
terrorists .The United States has blamed Muslims, chiefly Saudi nationals, for
the September 11 attacks.
Pilgrims
arrived from Mina, some 12 kilometers (seven miles) away, by foot, in buses and
in small vehicles and pick-ups, to the pilgrimage's most significant site.
"Here
I am here, answering Your call, O Allah! You have no partner. Here I am,
answering Your Call, O Allah. Verily, all the praise, the grace belong to You,
and the kingdom. You have no partner," chanted the masses as they
approached Mount Arafat, where Prophet Muhammad (Allah’s Peace And Prayers Be
upon Him) delivered his last sermon 14 centuries ago.
Standing
on Mount Arafat before sunset Thursday, February 21, is the high point of the
Hajj.
The
faithful – men clad in a two-piece seamless white cloth, the women covered
except for the hands and face – spend the day praying for mercy, in a symbolic
enactment of the Final Judgement at the scene of the Prophet's last sermon.
"I
really can't describe the feeling of being here at Arafat for the first time.
It's overwhelming," 52-year-old Egyptian Fakhri Bassiuni told AFP. "I
will pray for forgiveness and for the victory of Muslims all over the world. I
wish to see the [Islamic] ummah [nation] united and progressing," he said.
"I
pray to God to help Muslims the world over, especially the Palestinians, and
grant them victory," said Ahmad Mohsen, a 65-year-old Yemeni resident of
Mecca who is on his eighth pilgrimage.
Unofficial
estimates indicate some 1.4 million pilgrims have come from outside Saudi Arabia
and up to 800,000 from various parts of the kingdom. They have been joined by
around 200,000 Mecca residents.
Thousands
of police were stationed along the routes to Mount Arafat and helicopters
hovered overhead.
The
Hajj has so far passed off peacefully, but Saudi newspapers reported Thursday
that 101 pilgrims, mostly aged over 60, had died of various diseases. Most were
Egyptians, Pakistanis and Algerians. Some 570 pilgrims have been hospitalized
for exhaustion or other health problems.
Many
pilgrims made the journey to Mount Arafat overnight in mild weather, but the
temperature soared above 30 degrees Celsius (86 Fahrenheit) during the day.
Muslims
must perform the Hajj at least once in their lifetime, if they have the means. 
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