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| Arabia |
| Ten killed as diety smites haj pilgrims with heavy rains |
| 2009-11-26 |
| At least 10 people have been killed by flooding in Jeddah and more deaths are feared after heavy rains forced the closure of a motorway to Makkah. "I confirm that it's 10 bodies but, I can't say anything more for now," a civil defence official told AFP. One person said he had seen several bodies and a bus that overturned in the storm. The annual haj pilgrimage began with delays for thousands of Muslims stuck in Jeddah on Wednesday, leaving pilgrims stranded. "We're stuck because of the water and rain. God willing, everything will be okay," said Hakan, a Turkish pilgrim from Istanbul as he waited for a bus to Makkah. Some 1.6 million pilgrims have come to Saudi Arabia for the haj. Officials appealed to the stranded pilgrims to stay in Jeddah until the motorway reopens.In central Makkah, pilgrims with umbrellas completed Tawaf, walking the ritual path around the Kaaba seven times. Some worried they would be unable to spend the night in a tent camp in a valley in Mina. "We are staying in tents for now. Heavy rain turned red-carpeted corridors into streams of water with empty cans of soft drinks floating," said Zohra Nasef, from Morocco and on her second haj. Authorities have improved facilities to ease the flow of pilgrims, particularly around the area where they throw stones at pillars symbolising the rejection of the devil's temptation. Officials are also trying to prevent a spread of the H1N1 virus during the crowded ritual. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #9 Did the Haj several times. Thing is you have an entire village save $$$ to send 1 eldest male member to Mecca. Often never seen a plane much less been on one. Have to have FA's who speak Arabic/English (usually Indonesian/Filipino/etc) but usual issues there. No clue re how to use toilets - trashed every flights. Usual story is folk trying to brew up tea on sterno in the aisles. Everyone brings souveniers back from Mecca - being poor it's usually rocks from the holy land! Planes waddle off the runway carrying them home. Funniest thing ever was showing the film "Edward Scissorshands" as the in flight movie. That was PERFECT for absolutely weirding out the pax - especially since there was no translation into their native language. Gotta have fun where you can! |
| Posted by: Spanky Wheack7175 2009-11-26 22:07 |
| #8 Nope, this is a longish comment I'm after, think it was JF (may be wrong), and it was basically what I recap just above. |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2009-11-26 18:14 |
| #7 Is this it? 2007-12-30 India-Pakistan Govt to build Haj House near airport Calcutta, India: The state government has decided to construct a multi-storeyed Haj House exclusively for Haj pilgrims on VIP road, at stone's throw from the airport. Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, who is also the minister-in-charge of minority welfare, will lay the foundation of this sprawling seven-storey building project covering 16 cottah of prime land. The state's Muslims have always complained about shoddy treatment meted out to them by airline companies during Haj. This time, too, the Hajis, who have been returning from the pilgrimage over the week have been victims of erratic flights. The state PWD has put Mackintosh Burn on the job. The building will come up near Kaikhali on VIP Road. "We'll complete it in two years. Around Rs 7 crore will be spent on construction which is aimed at providing comfort rather than luxury," Nilmoni Dhar, managing director, Mackintosh Burn, said. The building will accommodate at least 800 Hajis during November and December. For the rest of the year, it will serve as a vocational training centre. Md Soleman Biswas, councillor, Rajarhat-Gopalpur municipality, and member, West Bengal Haj Committee, said, "Haj training will also be conducted here. In 1996, then chief minister Jyoti Basu had a Haj House constructed on Dilkhusa Street. But that's too small." Abdus Sattar, minister of state for minority welfare, said, "The plight of the pilgrims who take the Centre's so-called subsidized Haj flights has led us to sanction this project immediately. The Hajis, perpetually on erratic flights, are forced to stay here overnight." |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2009-11-26 16:24 |
| #6 hey Zohra, how bout picking up your trash? And while I'm at it, can anyone, just anyone, *please* try and locate back that comment (from John Frum???, maybe before he took that handle), about how airlines had to comply with the Haji pilgrims????... Filling planes with trash, cooking, with goats running around, spitting, wimmen kicking the hostesses because of their immodesty, ripping off and stealing anything they can... all this while those pilgrims actually are supposed NOT to be the lowest of the low and the poorest of the poor, given than they can afford this gigantic scam (that brings huge bucks to the saudis)? |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2009-11-26 16:15 |
| #5 Allan must be badly annoyed about something. Flooding rains in Saudi Arabia to kill them rather than the 'normally annoyed' method of crowd stomping to kill them? This just doesn't make any damn sense... I thought it was widely-acknowledged that Allan actually was Loki under a very shallow disguise... but, isn't rain and thunder more of Thor's realm? That's very confusing. |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2009-11-26 16:10 |
| #4 hey Zohra, how bout picking up your trash? Hum, remember that article about pig killings in egypt having led to an unfortunate garbage crisis... as garbage cleaning is left to those uppity Christians and their pigs. As far as some populations go, cleaning their own trash simply doesn't seem to a priority, as seen from that example above, to the african/arab 'hoods in Europe. |
| Posted by: anonymous5089 2009-11-26 16:07 |
| #3 Thats 1.6 million bits of trash Frank . She'll be there all day ! |
| Posted by: Oscar 2009-11-26 10:49 |
| #2 "We are staying in tents for now. Heavy rain turned red-carpeted corridors into streams of water with empty cans of soft drinks floating," said Zohra Nasef, from Morocco and on her second haj. hey Zohra, how bout picking up your trash? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2009-11-26 09:30 |
| #1 Allan must be badly annoyed about something. Flooding rains in Saudi Arabia to kill them rather than the 'normally annoyed' method of crowd stomping to kill them? |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2009-11-26 08:58 |