(17 Jun 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mina, Saudi Arabia - 17 June 2024
1. Various of pilgrims symbolically stoning the devil as part of the Hajj pilgrimage
2. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) Ahmed al-Baradie, Egyptian pilgrim: ++STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT; PARTLY OVERLAID WITH SHOTS 3-4++
"Of course, it is very difficult. The temperature is abnormal compared to the past years and this affects us a lot."
3. Pilgrims protecting themselves from the sun with parasols
4. Pilgrims symbolically stoning the devil as part of the Hajj pilgrimage
5. Various of pilgrims walking
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mecca, Saudi Arabia - 17 June 2024
6. Various aerials of Grand Mosque
STORYLINE:
Muslim pilgrims carried out a symbolic stoning of the devil in Saudi Arabia for the second day on Monday as they were wrapping up their final days of the Hajj pilgrimage in the deadly summer heat.
Pilgrims used the early morning hours to perform the second stoning of pillars representing the devil in Mina, a desert plain just outside the city of Mecca.
A third stoning is scheduled Tuesday, before the Farewell Tawaf, or circling the cube-shaped Kaaba in Mecca.
The Hajj rites largely commemorate the Quran’s accounts of Prophet Ibrahim, his son Prophet Ismail and Ismail’s mother Hajar — or Abraham and Ismael as they are named in the Bible.
The rites have taken place under the soaring summer heat, which is expected to reach 49 degrees Celsius (120 degrees Fahrenheit) in Mecca and the sacred sites in and around the city, according to the Saudi National Center for Metrology.
"It is very difficult. The temperature is abnormal compared to the past years and this affects us a lot," said Ahmed al-Baradie, an Egyptian pilgrim.
The Hajj pilgrimage is one of the Five Pillars of Islam.
All Muslims are required to make the five-day Hajj at least once in their lives if they are physically and financially able to do so.
More than 2,760 pilgrims suffered from sunstroke and heat stress on Sunday alone at the start of the first round of stoning, according to the Health Ministry.
Jordan announced Sunday that 14 Jordanian pilgrims died from heatstroke during the Hajj.
The number of pilgrims on the roads leading to the pillars Monday morning decreased significantly, compared to Sunday’s rites.
Security forces, medics and first responders have been deployed in and around Mina, especially on roads and open areas to help pilgrims.
Pakistani pilgrim Khoda Bakhch opted to perform the second day of stoning in the evening to avoid higher temperatures earlier in the day.
The stoning began Sunday, a day after the pilgrims visited the sacred Mount Arafat where they spent their day in worship and reflection.
The ritual in Mount Arafat, known as the hill of mercy, is considered the peak of the Hajj pilgrimage.
The pilgrims collected the pebbles, which they have used in the symbolic stoning of pillars, from Muzdalifa, an area located a few kilometers (miles) away from Mount Arafat.
More than 1.83 million Muslims performed Hajj in 2024, slightly less than last year’s figure of 1.84 million, according to Saudi officials.
The final days of the Hajj coincide with Muslims around the world celebrating the Eid al-Adha holiday.
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