A picture taken on Sept 9, shows a general view of Muslim pilgrims from all around the world circling around the Holy Ka’aba at the Grand Mosque, in the Saudi city of Makkah. The annual Hajj pilgrimage begins on Sept 10, and more than a million Muslims have already fl ocked to Saudi Arabia in preparation for what will for many be the highlight of their spiritual lives. (AFP)

MAKKAH, Saudi Arabia, Sept 9, (AFP): Close to two million pilgrims have converged on western Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj where new measures aim to prevent a recurrence of last year’s stampede which killed around 2,300. The stampede legacy has contributed to renewed tensions between Saudi Arabia and its regional rival Iran, which is not sending pilgrims for the first time in nearly three decades. While the main rites of the six-day event begin on Saturday, pilgrims have already been swirling around the holy Ka’aba at the Grand Mosque in Makkah, a procession that continues day and night. It is one of the first rites of the pilgrimage, which is among the largest religious gatherings in the world.

The Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam, which capable Muslims must perform at least once, marking the spiritual peak of their lives. Rich and poor alike come dressed in the same white garments. “We don’t come here with fear in our hearts,” said Naouri Abdelkarim, 50, of Casablanca, Morocco. Death can come at any time, pilgrims say, and for Lawan Nasir, 45, that meant there was no reason to avoid the Hajj even though he lost a cousin in last year’s stampede. “The pains have not dulled a bit,” but it would be “silly” to stay away, the Nigerian told AFP.

In one of several safety measures implemented after the stampede, access to the Ka’aba is suspended during prayers, and the walk around it is stopped to avoid overcrowding. The Ka’aba is a black cubic structure that Muslims across the globe face while they pray.Security has also been reinforced around Islam’s holiest site, where officers in red berets and camouflage uniforms man green plastic barricades to control the crowd. During the main weekly Friday prayers, the white-clad throng made the area around the Ka’aba resemble a snowdusted field from above.

Worshippers overflowed into surrounding streets shut to allow access for hundreds of thousands of people as a helicopter monitored the scene. Pilgrims have also been told to follow the rules. “They said not to stray from our group, not to linger when buses arrive and depart, and to properly respect the designated routes,” said Rasha Mohammed, 36, of Alexandria, Egypt. With temperatures of 43 Celsius (109Fahrenheit) as they marched, some pilgrims seemed faint. They carried water and tried to help each other under the unyielding sun.

The kingdom has begun issuing pilgrims with identification bracelets, after some foreign officials expressed concern about difficulties in identifying the stampede dead. Each bracelet carries a bar code readable by smartphone. It holds data including the pilgrim’s identity, nationality, and place of lodging in Makkah, the vice secretary of the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, Issa Rawas, told AFP.

“The aim is to equip all pilgrims” from abroad, who are expected to number more than 1.4 million, he said. Local media say close to 300,000 faithful from inside Saudi Arabia were also expected. Zakou Bakar, 50, a pilgrim from Niger, said the bracelet was reassuring. Jane Kinninmont, deputy head of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House, a London think tank, said the stampede exposed “clearly some big organisational failings, to say the least”.

There was also “an absence of real transparency” about what went wrong, she said. Saudi Arabia has an economic stake in ensuring pilgrims’ comfort and safety. As part of efforts to diversify its oildependent economy, the kingdom wants to foster a year-round religious tourism sector relying on millions who perform the umrah, or lesser pilgrimage.

Arab foreign ministers weighed in Thursday on a bitter dispute between Tehran and Riyadh over the Hajj pilgrimage, after Iran’s supreme leader questioned Saudi Arabia’s management of Islam’s holiest site. “The council of Arab foreign ministers condemns the bellicose, inciting statements by the supreme leader, (Ali) Khamenei,” the ministers said in a statement after a meeting in Cairo where the Arab League is based.

“The language used in (Khamenei’s) statements is inappropriate for the highest authority in the Islamic Republic of Iran,” they said. Iranians have been blocked from attending the pilgrimage to Makkah that starts on Saturday, after talks on logistics to avoid a repeat of last year’s deadly stampede in the holy city foundered.