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Mina Ritual Stoning Continues After Hajj Tragedy
MINA, Saudi Arabia, March 6 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Almost two million Muslims on the Hajj pilgrimage continued the ritual of stoning pillars representing Satan at Mina, near Mecca, on Tuesday, a day after 35 pilgrims were killed in a stampede.
"Do not rush. Move away quickly once you have completed your ritual," Saudi authorities bellowed in several languages over loud speakers, as the mass of pilgrims chanted "God is greatest!"
All dressed in white as a symbol of equality - the men clad in two-piece seamless white cloth, the women covered except for the hands and face - the faithful began converging on the pillars after midday prayers.
Thousands of policemen were deployed on the roads leading to the pillars to try to prevent a repeat of the stampede, while helicopters hovered overhead.
Thirty-five pilgrims, including 23 women, were crushed to death in a stampede toward one of the pillars during the "Stoning of Satan" ritual on Monday, the third such tragedy in less than a decade.
Most of the victims were elderly and died of suffocation. "A stampede resulted when the older people in the crowd couldn't move as fast as others," civil defense chief Saad bin Abdullah al-Tuwaijri told the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) on Monday.
Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul Aziz blamed the stampede on a "lack of organization" by Saudi authorities and the different groups in charge of organizing pilgrims from 160 countries as well as inhabitants from the Mecca region for joining in the pilgrimage unannounced.
He also blamed pilgrims for the deaths, saying, "they should allow everyone to perform their rituals and they should show tolerance, calmness and forgiveness toward each other."
Government sources also say that the deaths occurred after some pilgrims in the massive crowd dropped luggage they were carrying, causing others to trip and fall amid the press of people.
In a meeting with Saudi security forces Tuesday, the prince said he "hoped to prevent such incidents happening in the future through improved information campaigns for pilgrims before their arrival in Saudi Arabia to better bring across the need to avoid stampedes."
Saudi newspapers reported that 107 pilgrims from Bangladesh, Egypt, India, Morocco, Pakistan and Turkey were injured in the crush, but said more than 60 had been discharged from hospital after receiving treatment.
The Saudi civil defense force has not released the identity of the victims, but according to a witness, most of them appeared to be Asians. A local Saudi newspaper, Al-Medina, reported that an Iranian and a Nigerian were among the dead.
Egypt's ambassador to Riyadh, Hilmi B'dir, said that two Egyptians were among the 35 killed, while three others were wounded.
Al-Tuwaijri said the death toll "would have been much higher had it not been for the swift intervention of Saudi security forces, deployed in great numbers in Mina at the moment of the drama."
According to rumors circulating amongst pilgrims, the toll could number "more than 200".
In their traditional address to pilgrims, Saudi King Fahd and Crown Prince Abdullah urged Islamic countries Tuesday to close ranks and throw their weight behind the Palestinian cause.
"We will continue to support the causes of Arab and Islamic nations, particularly the just cause of the Palestinian people to regain all their usurped rights."
Palestinians should be able to "establish their own independent state with its capital city in Jerusalem and ensure the right of refugees to return," they said.
As laid down by Islam, the faithful have to approach three giant pillars representing the devil - each standing about 18 meters (58 feet) in height - so as to hit the mark with small stones, or "jamarat".
All the pilgrims have to get into an area extending out about 300 meters around the pillars. According to tradition, it is the place where Satan appeared first to the Prophet Ibrahim (AS), to his son, Ismail, and to Ismail's mother, Hagar.
Ibrahim and his family each threw seven stones at Satan. This gesture has been perpetuated as Muslims must complete this act to finish the hajj.
The ritual lasts three days, and each pilgrim must throw seven stones each day.
A record 1.5 million pilgrims have poured into Saudi Arabia this year, joining around 500,000 Muslim pilgrims who live in the kingdom, for the hajj, which is one of the five pillars of Islam.
Every able-bodied Muslim with the financial means is required to make the hajj at least once in a lifetime.
Monday's deadly stampede was the third of its kind to happen during the stoning at Mina. In 1998, 118 pilgrims were killed and more than 180 others injured, while 270 pilgrims died four years earlier in another stampede during the same ritual.
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