Egyptian movie superstars and famous soccer players have captured the spirit of Haj in Mina this year. Their competition for fans at the box office and the stadium has diminished as they appeared united in one Mina camp for one common cause, devotion to Allah. “If the sport and movie competition breaks us up, the Haj unites all of us,” said Saeed Saleh, a talented movie and stage superstar, primarily comedian, who started his career in 1960s. He refused to talk about anything other than the Haj. It is a great opportunity to ponder the purpose of our existence and devote one's time to the worship of God, he said. “Makkah and Madina have a unique spirit of their own. They have captured the hearts and minds of the millions who keep wanting to visit them every year to perform the same rituals,” he said. Mahmood Abdulaziz, a movie superstar who played the role of Rafat Al-Hajan or Jack Beton, the ultimate Egyptian spy in the history of intelligence, refused to be photographed with his long gray beard, saying he will be making a surprise appearance with the new look in his new movie. Actor Mahmood Abdulaziz became well know after playing the role of Rafat Al-Hajan who became a national hero of Egypt moving to Israel as an intelligence official in 1956 and providing Egypt with vital information like the Six-Day War through his connections with then Israeli prime minister Golda Meir and Moshe Dayan, the then minister of defense. Mahmood Abdulaziz said it took him five months to grow his beard, always trying to hide his identity whenever he had to go out of his house. “I never allowed anybody to see my new look back home,” he said.
