The new expansion of the Mas'a area for performing Sa'y between Safa and Marwah hillocks will be opened for at least three million Umrah pilgrims expected to visit the Grand Mosque this Ramadan. Sheikh Salah Bin Abd-ur-Rahman Al-Hussein, chief of the presidency of the Two Holy Mosques, told Saudi Gazette that special services will be available for pilgrims. These include up to 10,000 wheelchairs for the disabled and nine escalators for pilgrim movement to the first floor and the terrace of the Holy Haram. Scholars will lecture in Arabic, Malay, Urdu, Bahasa and other languages to educate pilgrims about the rituals related to Umrah and Haj. The lectures will be delivered after Fajr, Asr, and Maghrib prayers. An internal communication system with telephones has been arranged for pilgrims to seek clarifications from religious scholars at any time. In addition, over a million educational leaflets are being printed in different languages for free distribution. Only coffee and dates will be allowed inside the Grand Mosque for Iftar. A 3,000-strong labor force will clean the leftovers within seconds to prepare for the ensuing congregational Maghreb prayer. A factory cleanses the 25,000 water coolers and sterilizes the plastic glasses to eliminate any possible contamination. Workers will ensure supply of Zamzam water and floor cleaning. Thousands of square meters of carpet area is cleaned every day, the official said. In the Prophet's Mosque in Madina, arrangements have been made to provide nearly 2,000 gallons of Zamzam water through water tankers. Bread and yoghurt will be allowed to be taken inside the mosque for Iftar, he said. “The special arrangements will be in place till Oct. 10, well after Eid break,” Sheikh Al-Hussein said. __
