Muslim hajj pilgrims perform Satan stoning ritual
Mina, Aug 11: Almost 2.5 million Muslim pilgrims took part Sunday in the "stoning of the devil", the last major ritual of the annual hajj pilgrimage and one that has in past years led to deadly stampedes.
Carrying pebbles in the scorching heat, worshippers made their way across Mina Valley near Mecca in western Saudi Arabia to symbolically "humiliate" the devil.
Under the watchful eyes of security forces, waves of pilgrims clad in white threw seven stones each at a pillar symbolising Satan.
"It is hot, I drink a lot of water and I am still hidden under my umbrella," said Jaker Akjar, a 48-year-old Indian pilgrim, sporting a henna-dyed beard.
This was Akjar's first hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam that every Muslim is required to complete at least once in their lifetime if they are healthy enough and have the means to do so.
Muslim tradition holds that pilgrims must throw seven stones each at a pillar representing Satan on the first day of Eid al-Adha, following two days of prayer and meditation.
"I am well equipped and ready" to fight the devil, said Umar, a 33-year-old Saudi engineer, carrying pebbles in a plastic bottle.
The hajj, one of the world's largest religious gatherings, this year officially drew 2.49 million pilgrims to Islam's holiest sites in Saudi Arabia.
And the stoning ritual is not without risk, as millions of pilgrims converge on a tight space and the pebbles often miss their mark amid the screams of worshippers.
Mina has been the site of deadly stampedes such as in 2015 when more than 2,300 pilgrims crushed or suffocated to death.
Authorities have since reinforced safety and security measures.
Tens of thousands of security forces, including police and civil defence, have been deployed for hajj, according to Saudi authorities.
Ambulances are mobilised to assist the faithful, cameras follow their movement, helicopters constantly fly over this valley of white tents that only comes alive once a year during the hajj.
Large fans sprayed water over the crowd amid soaring temperatures.
Saudi Arabia's King Salman made the trip to Mina on Saturday and was seen on state-run television observing worshippers from the window of a high-rise.
"We pray to Allah almighty to... accept their pilgrimage and worship," he tweeted on Sunday, which marked the beginning of Eid al-Adha, the festival of sacrifice.
Muslims traditionally slaughter sheep for the three-day holiday in tribute to Prophet Abraham's sacrifice of a lamb after God at the last moment spared Ishmael, his son.
They consume some of the meat and give the rest to poor people unable to buy food.
Pilgrims can purchase coupons from the Saudi government, which organises the slaughter and freezing of the meat to avoid public health problems.
After the stoning ritual, pilgrims return to the Grand Mosque in Mecca to perform a final "tawaf" or circling of the Kaaba.
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Brittas urges Parliament resolution on Iran conflict, recalls Vajpayee-era Iraq war motion
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) MP John Brittas on Tuesday cited Parliament's 2003 unanimous resolution under then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee condemning the Iraq war, to urge the government to move a similar motion on the Iran conflict.
Speaking in the Rajya Sabha during zero hour, Brittas called for a "united and unanimous voice" of Parliament against what he described as unilateral and illegal wars by the US and Israel on Iran, saying India should not remain silent.
Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address in the Lok Sabha on Monday, he said key economic concerns and diaspora issues were raised but there was no reference to the broader conflict, which he said warranted a clear position from India.
"What was missing was the silence on this unilateral, immoral, illegal war that has been unleashed by the United States and Israel," he said.
The Prime Minister, he said, called for a unanimous and united voice from the Parliament.
Addressing chairman C P Radhakrishnan who was a member of the Lok Sabha in 2003, he said at that time, both the Houses of Parliament when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister, passed joint, unanimous resolution condemning the war against Iraq by the United States.
"I wish that Indian Parliament, as the Prime Minister said, should express unanimously a united voice," he said. "Let the government bring a resolution which should be passed by both the Houses."
Brittas said India has termed the attacks on Gulf countries by Iran as egregious.
"But what about the genesis of this crisis?" he asked. "I wish that the government does not go by the advice of (Congress leader) Shashi Tharoor who said that silence is statecraft. I wish that they should be guided by the advice from (Congress president) Mallikarjun Kharge not from Shahi Tharoor."
Kharge has repeatedly demanded an immediate short-duration discussion on the Iran war and its fallout on India.
"I wish that India, being a leader of the non-alignment nations, should feel that silence is not a solution. We have to make sure that our voice is heard. And it is not only for the selfish interest of the nation but for the interest of the larger humanity. So I call on the government to come with a resolution," Brittas said.
He also flagged concerns over Indians affected by the situation, including around 700 seafarers stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, and urged the government to put in place a mechanism to facilitate communication with their families.
Brittas sought a rehabilitation package for Gulf returnees, highlighting the scale of remittances to India and their importance to Kerala's economy.
Kerala gets almost Rs 2.2 lakh crore - one third of the state's gross domestic product - in remittances, he said.
Prime Minister Modi in his address in Lok Sabha on Monday talked about economic fall out of the war in Iran, disruptions in supply chain, impact on daily lives of people, serious situation on the LPG front and the condition of the Indian diaspora but was silent on military strikes launched by the US and Israel on Iran on February 28, which triggered a wider conflict in the region.
