By Kayode Sanni-Arewa From Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
In order to stop fatalities often recorded during the stoning of the three devils at Muna, which is part of the sacred Hajj ritual for Muslim pilgrims, Saudi authorities has introduced electronic system for pilgrims that would undergo the exercise.
Saudi Arabia: pilgrims
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Vanguard reports that thousands of Muslims every year perform the exercise which comes up after Arafat day and ushers in Eid Al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) celebrations.
The innovation according to the representative of National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, in Saudi Arabia, Dr Tanko Aliyu is to ensure pilgrims are orderly with a view to avoid stampede.
He stated this at Muna, during an inspection tour with journalists to the tent of Nigeria Pilgrims, which he said was part of NAHCON’s measures to ensure that they are well catered for on arrival at Muna.
According to him, “pilgrims will be in groups with specific time to carry out Stoning to avoid stampede.
“The new idea is necessitated by the fact that, previous stoning was not without some negative developments.”
Dr Aliyu further stated that Nigeria Pilgrims which constitutes one third population of non Arab countries for this year’s Hajj exercise, would be conveyed in buses for easy movement to sites of the symbolic ‘Stoning of the three Devils’.
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