Kaaba
Umrah diary: Prayers, grief and joy in Mecca
By Dilshad Ali — February 21, 2024
(RNS) — I was disappointed to not experience my children’s reaction to seeing the Kaaba for the first time, but made my peace.
Umrah diary: God makes his own plans for our time in Medina
By Dilshad Ali — February 12, 2024
(RNS) — Medina, where Muhammad is buried, is not part of the official pilgrimage but offers contentment.
Hajj pilgrims perform final rituals in Mecca before heading to Mina
By Riazat Butt — June 26, 2023
MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia has restored full pilgrim capacity for this year’s Hajj, following three years of dramatically reduced numbers due to the pandemic, with more than 2 million Muslims expected to take part
Ambitious Saudi plans to ramp up Hajj could face challenges from climate change
By Riazat Butt — June 23, 2023
MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — The increased number of pilgrims, with the associated surge in international air travel and infrastructure expansion, also raises sustainability concerns, even as the oil giant pursues the goal of getting half its energy from renewable resources by 2030.
A hajj closer to normal: 1 million Muslims begin pilgrimage
By Isabel Debre and Amr Nabil — July 7, 2022
MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — While this year’s attendance is far below the pre-pandemic influx of 2.5 million pilgrims, it represents a significant step closer to normal after the kingdom restricted the event to a small number of Muslim residents for the past two years.
UFOs and science fiction in Muslim culture goes well beyond ‘Dune’
By Joseph Hammond — November 19, 2021
(RNS) — In the Middle East, in particular, science fiction became an outlet for political criticism.
Like many hajj traditions in a pandemic year, Zamzam water gets a reboot
By Joseph Hammond — July 21, 2021
(RNS) — In an effort to keep COVID-19 transmission to a minimum, Saudi authorities have deployed 20 robots to serve bottles of Islam's holiest water to often bemused pilgrims.
With pandemic in mind, pared-back hajj in Mecca for 2nd year
By Aya Batrawy and Amr Nabil — July 19, 2021
MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Tens of thousands of vaccinated Muslim pilgrims circled Islam's holiest site in Mecca on Sunday.
What is the Hajj?
By Ken Chitwood — August 17, 2018
(The Conversation) — Nearly 2 million Muslim pilgrims are gathering in the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia for the Hajj, a once-in-a-lifetime obligation for all Muslims who are able to undertake the five-day pilgrimage.
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