Adalet Gigek sat impatiently in a crowded hotel lobby, waiting for the minibus to take her to the Grand Mosque for noon prayers. She has spent five years hoping for the chance to fulfill her duty as a Muslim by performing Haj and knows she will only be allowed again after five more years because pilgrim numbers are strictly controlled to prevent overcrowding. “Each year for the past five years I checked with the authorities,” said the 66-year-old mother of eight, a rosy pink scarf framing her beaming face. “When I finally found out I was selected I soared with happiness.” As one of Islam's five pillars, the Haj is enjoined on all Muslims who are physically and financially able to carry it out. Home to Islam's holiest sites, Saudi Arabia bears the responsibility of maintaining a peaceful Haj season when Muslims from various corners of the world gather at the same place and time. Although Haj starts on the eighth day of the lunar month of Dhul Hijjah, which falls this year on Friday, Nov. 4, most pilgrims come earlier to visit the holy mosques in Makkah and Madina. Over 1.5 million pilgrims have arrived in Makkah region so far. In a turbulent year for the Middle East, Saudi Arabia has been keen to maintain peace and security. “Allah did not intend Haj to be a place for dispute, haggling... or using it for political agendas or preaching grim sectarianism,” the Grand Mufti, Sheikh Abdul Aziz Aal Al-Shaikh, said last week. The Saudi authorities have lavished vast sums to expand the main Haj sites and improve Makkah's transportation system. The Grand Mosque carries the most religious significance. An expansion project will raise the mosque's capacity to allow it to hold two million pilgrims and install pedestrian bridges. The area of Makkah around the Grand Mosque is also being transformed, as high-rise buildings are put up to cater for the large influx of visitors. This month, pilgrims will have full access to a $1.8 billion railway, which was launched at only 30 percent of its capacity last year, to ease pilgrim transport between holy sites around Makkah. Gigek, the Turkish pilgrim, is relishing an opportunity that has cost her more than 2,700 euros ($3,800) as well as her long wait. “Many are still waiting for their chance,” she said. __
