A total of 1,600 boy scouts will be deployed at air, road and border entry points to help pilgrims during this year's Haj. The scouts are from 11 education administrations — Tabuk, Jeddah, Jizan, Taif, Al-Gurayyat, Al-Qassim, Al-Jouf, Northern Frontier Region, Al-Majma'ah, Al-Kharj and Al-Quwai'iah. Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Barrak, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Education, said the assistance has been ordered by Prince Faisal Bin Abdullah, Minister of Education, who also serves as the Chairman of the Saudi Arabian Boy Scouts Association (SABSA). Al-Barrak said the minister wants to instill a love of volunteerism, helping others and social and national responsibility in the country's young people. The scouts will receive pilgrims, set up rest camps and provide hot beverages, dates and long-lasting meals. They will also prepare separate places for women and men who arrive late at night. They will register the number of passengers arriving by bus in cooperation with the Passports Department at the border post. They will also guide pilgrims to special areas to complete their entry procedures and take them to health centers for vaccinations and treatment if necessary. Hai'a distributes 15,000 umbrellas Meanwhile, the General Presidency of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (the Hai'a) distributed over 15,000 umbrellas to pilgrims in the courtyards of the Grand Mosque in Makkah on Friday. The distribution of the umbrellas was in line with the directives of Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Al-Humayyen, General President of the Hai'a. Each umbrella has the organization's logo and the expression “The Kingdom is honored to serve pilgrims”. The Hai'a will also hand out umbrellas at its guidance centers. The majority of umbrellas will be distributed on Arafat Day. Sheikh Saleh Al-Saleh, Secretary General of the Higher Committee for the Hai'a during Haj, said that the umbrellas are being distributed to enable pilgrims in open areas to protect themselves from the sun. He said a distribution plan was laid out and approved by the organization in cooperation with other authorities.
