Hajj 2025: Saudi Arabia launches smart guide for pilgrims
Listen to article
Saudi Arabia has launched an electronic guide in six languages to assist pilgrims preparing for this year's Islamic Hajj pilgrimage, set to take place in early June.
The "Smart Book of Hajj Rituals" is available in Arabic, English, French, Urdu, Malayalam, and Turkish. The guide can be accessed via electronic libraries in mosques and on board flights operated by Saudi Arabia's national carrier, Saudia. The initiative aims to educate pilgrims about the rules and rituals of Hajj.
The project was unveiled by Saudi Minister of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance, Sheikh Abdullatif Al Al Sheikh, who also chairs the ministry's Supreme Committee for Hajj, Umrah and Visit Affairs. The launch took place during a meeting with officials serving in Mecca, home to Islam's holiest mosque.
The meeting also reviewed broader preparations for the pilgrimage, including the readiness of mosques along pilgrims' travel routes, the rollout of guidance programmes, the deployment of translators in multiple languages at land, sea, and air entry points, and the distribution of educational materials.
Hajj is one of Islam's five mandatory pillars. Every Muslim who is physically and financially capable is required to perform the pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime.
According to official Saudi figures, around 1.8 million Muslims performed Hajj last year, with approximately 1.6 million coming from outside the kingdom.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Recorder
7 hours ago
- Business Recorder
PM, Field Marshal perform Umrah
JEDDAH: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir have performed Umrah along with members of the Pakistani delegation during their ongoing official visit to Saudi Arabia. During the Umrah pilgrimage, special prayers were offered for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan, the unity of the Muslim Ummah, and for the oppressed people of Gaza. Upon arrival in Jeddah, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was warmly received by Prince Saud bin Abdullah Al Jiluwi, Governor of Jeddah; Nawaf bin Saeed Al-Malki, Saudi Ambassador to Pakistan; Ahmed Farooq, Pakistan's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia; and other diplomatic officials. The Prime Minister's visit is scheduled for June 5 and 6, and he is spending Eid-ul-Azha in Saudi Arabia. A special meeting will be held between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. During the meeting, both leaders will discuss strengthening bilateral cooperation in key areas including trade and investment, welfare of the Muslim Ummah, and regional peace and security. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will also thank the Saudi leadership for their constructive role in easing the recent Pakistan-India tensions.
Business Recorder
2 days ago
- Business Recorder
Muslim pilgrims pray at Mount Arafat in Hajj apex
MOUNT ARAFAT: Muslim pilgrims prayed atop Mount Arafat on Thursday during the high point of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, as Saudi officials called on participants to refrain from being outside during the hottest hours of the day. Thousands of pilgrims began to gather before dawn around the hill and the surrounding plain where the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) is believed to have given his last sermon. While some arrived early to take advantage of the relatively cool morning, carrying colourful umbrellas, many pilgrims will remain for hours of prayers and Quran recitals until the evening in the most arduous portion of the Hajj. After sunset they will head to Muzdalifah, halfway between Arafat and the sprawling tent city of Mina, where they will gather pebbles so they can perform the symbolic 'stoning of the devil'. Million-plus pilgrims to begin Hajj under blazing sun 'This is something that I used to see every year on the TV screen during Hajj and I always thought: 'I wish I could be here',' said 33-year-old Ali from Pakistan, one of 1.5 million pilgrims who had arrived in Saudi Arabia for the pilgrimage. 'I've been trying to get here… for the past 3 years,' he added as he gazed at the mount. 'I feel very blessed.' Hundreds of pilgrims dressed in white dotted the mount itself, with many more at its foot praying or taking pictures. Earlier this week, Saudi authorities called on pilgrims to stay inside their tents between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm on Thursday, when the desert sun is at its harshest. Fans spraying mist and providing cool air were dispersed at the foot of the mount. Temperatures this year have already exceeded 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) as one of the world's largest annual religious gatherings, bringing together devotees from around the globe, kicked off earlier this week. Pilgrims come together in Makkah under scorching desert heat Officials have beefed up heat mitigation efforts aiming to avoid a repeat of last year's Hajj, which saw 1,301 pilgrims die as temperatures reached 51.8C. 'I came here early to (avoid) the sun and later I will pray inside my tent,' said 54-year-old Adel Ismail, from Syria. To make this year's pilgrimage safer, authorities have expanded infrastructure, deployed thousands of extra personnel and relied on an arsenal of high-tech tools to help better manage crowds. Authorities have mobilised more than 40 government agencies and 250,000 officials, doubling their efforts against heat-related illness following the lethal heatwave of 2024. Shaded areas have been expanded by 50,000 square metres (12 acres), thousands more medics will be on standby, and more than 400 cooling units will be deployed, the Hajj minister has told AFP. Through tears of joy, Iman Abdel Khaleq said she had wanted to perform the Hajj for 10 years and was overwhelmed with emotion as she arrived at Arafat. 'It's a big dream for me that I had almost given hope up of realising,' the woman in her fifties told AFP from the foot of the mount. Authorities said a majority of the deaths in 2024 were among unregistered pilgrims who lacked access to amenities like air-conditioned tents and buses. This year, they have also cracked down on unregistered pilgrims looking to sneak into Makkah, relying on frequent raids, drone surveillance and a barrage of text alerts. Hajj permits are allocated to countries on a quota basis and distributed to individuals by a lottery. Saudi hosts urge pilgrims to stay indoors during Day of Arafat But even for those who can obtain them, the steep costs prompt many to attempt the Hajj without a permit, even though they risk arrest and deportation if caught. Saudi Arabia earns billions of dollars a year from the Hajj, and the lesser pilgrimage known as umrah, undertaken at other times of the year.
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Express Tribune
AI, drones and thousands of cameras to keep pilgrims safe
Employees man their terminals at the control room for traffic and crowd management for pilgrims at the General Transport Centre at the Royal Commission for Makkah. Photo: AFP Working day and night in front of maps, screens and seemingly endless data, Saudi officials have harnessed artificial intelligence to help manage the million-strong sea of pilgrims during the Hajj. The technology has proven pivotal to track the overwhelming amount of footage from more than 15,000 cameras in and around the holy city of Makkah. The systems are tuned to spot abnormal crowd movements or predict bottlenecks in foot traffic -- a potential life-saver at a packed event with a history of deadly stampedes. Software is also used to help guide more than 20,000 buses deployed to transport pilgrims between holy sites during one of the world's biggest annual religious gatherings. It is all part of the tech arsenal that Saudi Arabia is deploying as 1.4 million faithful from across the globe descend on Makkah and its surrounds. "In our traffic control room, we use specialised cameras that have AI layers to analyse movements, crowded areas" and predict behaviours, said Mohamed Nazier, chief executive officer for the General Transport Centre at the Royal Commission for Makkah. The centre has a main control room in Makkah filled with screens and maps, where staff use high-tech tools including AI for round-the-clock monitoring. About a dozen staff members sit in rows before desktop computers with a large display at the front, zooming in on crowd movements around the holy sites. On hillsides nearby, cameras that resemble little white robots film buildings, roads and pathways along the Hajj route, which winds more than 20 kilometres (12 miles) between Makkh and Mount Arafat. Nazier said the constant monitoring is aimed at averting traffic collisions with pedestrians on crowded routes while also making sure there are buses available to minimise walking time in the desert heat. It is a decade since the Hajj suffered its worst disaster, a stampede that killed up to 2,300 people during the "stoning of the devil" ritual.
