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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 JEDDAH 000466 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR NEA/ARP (HARRIS), DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/01/2019 
TAGS: KIRF KISL PGOV PREL KFLU SA
SUBJECT: HAJJ 2009/1430 -- AN AMERICAN'S INSIDE VIEW OF THE 
PILGRIMAGE 
 
REF: A. JEDDAH 0131 
     ¶B. JEDDAH 0452 
 
JEDDAH 00000466  001.2 OF 004 
 
 
Classified By: Consul General Martin R. Quinn for reasons 1.4 (b) and ( 
d) 
 
1.(C) SUMMARY:   Performing the Hajj himself, ConGen Poloff 
obtained an insider's view of the logistics of the 
pilgrimage, an event which annually attracts two to three 
million Muslim worshippers, all converging on the same holy 
sites during the same five-day interval.  The total numbers 
at this year's Hajj are believed to be slightly less than 
last year, mainly as a result of concern about contracting 
H1N1 flu, but nevertheless posed daunting challenges of crowd 
control and managing enormous, ethnically and economically 
diverse groups of men, women and children speaking scores of 
languages and dialects.  Despite torrential downpours on 
Wednesday, November 25, the first day of the pilgrimage, the 
Saudi Arabian Government (SAG) once again organized and 
hosted a successful Hajj, claiming to have contained the 
spread of the H1N1 virus while providing pilgrims with 
improved, safer facilities, such as the expanded Jamarat 
Bridge.  There were no major mishaps or accidents and no acts 
of political violence or protest to disrupt what is typically 
a peaceful procession of world Muslims intent on performing 
their religious obligation, one of the five pillars of Islam. 
 END SUMMARY. 
 
RARE DOWNPOUR DISRUPTS FIRST DAY OF HAJJ 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.    (C) Muslim pilgrims were greeted with rare 
thunderstorms on Wednesday, November 25, the first day of the 
Hajj pilgrimage as they performed their rites in the Holy 
Mosque.  Torrential rain soaked worshippers dressed in their 
Ihrams (white pilgrimage garb) circling the Ka,aba in the 
ritual known as the "tawaf" (ref A). Although no major 
injuries were reported on account of the rain, pilgrims, 
young and old, could be seen slipping and falling as they 
struggled to make their way around the slick, wet marble 
floor of the Mecca mosque. 
 
¶3.    (C) At the height of the rainstorm the Holy Mosque, 
usually filled to capacity on the opening day of the 
pilgrimage, was nearly empty as pilgrims sought shelter in 
nearby buildings until the showers passed.  The Mecca streets 
flooded with muddy rain water, making it difficult for 
pilgrims to move around town.  However, the rare downpour did 
not put much of a damper on the overall pilgrimage. 
Officials quickly dispatched workers to sweep up the water 
and by the next morning it was hard to tell that either the 
mosque or the city of Mecca had seen any rain the previous 
day. 
 
 
THE HOLY MOSQUE 
--------------- 
 
¶4.    (C) As pilgrims returned to the Holy Mosque on the 3rd 
and 5th days to perform additional tawafs around the 
Ka,aba, they encountered the usual enormous Hajj crowds. 
Pilgrims poured into the mosque at a seemingly endless pace, 
all jockeying for a position as close to the Ka,aba as 
physically possible. Accordingly, the ground and lower levels 
remained jam-packed both days, with many pilgrims on those 
levels recounting later that they felt as if the sheer force 
of the crowd moved them around the Ka,aba, with their feet 
hardly touching the ground. Pilgrims on the two upper floors 
benefited from more space and the picturesque view below of 
tens of thousands of worshippers clothed in white moving 
counterclockwise around the Ka,aba like a slow-moving 
hurricane. 
 
 
¶5.    (C) Exiting the Mosque is more difficult than entering. 
 Worshippers pushed and shoved through the tight crowd to 
make their way out; however, no one seemed to lose control 
and helping hands were offered to those who looked as if they 
were losing their footing.  However, some of the most 
striking images in the crowded mosque were of men of various 
nationalities escorting their wives and daughters through the 
crowds.  While the general Islamic practice worldwide is to 
 
JEDDAH 00000466  002.2 OF 004 
 
 
restrict men and women from praying or interacting with each 
other while inside mosques, the genders are free to interact 
and worship side-by-side in Islam,s holiest site (Ref A). 
 
 
H1N1 CONTAINED 
-------------- 
 
¶6.    (SBU) Measures taken by the SAG to control the spread 
of H1N1 seem to have worked as reports that among the 
estimated 2.5 million pilgrims attending the Hajj, only 
seventy-three(73) are known to have contracted the flu and 
only five pilgrims died from associated complications. (NOTE: 
For perspective, over 200 pilgrims from Indonesia died during 
the course of the pilgrimage, of natural causes associated 
with old age or chronic disease.  Indonesia sends 200,000 
pilgrims every year on Hajj and the mortality rate is 
typical. END NOTE.)  Center for Disease Control official, Dr. 
Shahul Ibrahim, told Poloff in Mecca on November 28 that 
&CDC and SAG preparations have paid off since the virus was 
contained.8  Ibrahim added that Saudi officials were &very 
pleased with President Obama's statement on Hajj and 
Eid-al-Adha8 in which efforts by the Department of Health 
and Human Services and the Saudi Health Ministry to limit the 
spread of the virus during the Hajj season were singled out 
for praise.  Multi-lingual signs reminding pilgrims to wash 
their hands to avoid spreading the virus were visible 
throughout the streets of Mina while an estimated twenty 
percent of the pilgrims were observed wearing surgical masks 
as they performed their rites.  However, CDC officials warn 
that there is still a chance that some pilgrims may have 
contracted the virus on Hajj and could subsequently carry it 
back to their homelands.  SAG health officials are reported 
to be conducting random H1N1 testing of pilgrims leaving the 
Kingdom. 
 
 
 
JAMARAT BRIDGE EXPANSION -- ENGINEERING SUCCESS 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶7.    (SBU) The new state-of-the-art Jamarat Bridge was 
acclaimed a success at this year,s Hajj (ref B). The bridge 
is perhaps the most important structure at the Hajj from a 
logistical perspective, as pilgrims must visit the structure 
three times during the course of the Hajj. The bridge, 
constructed around three pillars at which pilgrims throw 
small stones or pebbles in the "stoning the devil" ritual, 
caused serious problems in past years when pilgrims were 
crushed in stampedes towards the entrance of what to used to 
be a single-level structure.  The new five-level bridge 
allows for much smoother movements in out and out of the 
facility by having five roads on which pilgrims travel to the 
site lead to each of the five different levels.  When one 
road started to become congested, Saudi officials diverted 
pilgrims to another road which led to a different level of 
the structure. This strategy ensured that no level was too 
crowded at any time.  Saudi guards, posted every hundred 
feet, kept pilgrims moving toward their destination. 
Pilgrims who had made the Hajj in previous years said the new 
bridge made performing the rite much easier. 
 
¶8.   (SBU) After completing the first round of "stoning the 
devil," pilgrims are allowed to change out of their Ihram and 
put on regular clothing for the remainder of the Hajj, a 
transformative occasion which provides the most striking 
reminder of the diversity of the participants.  As pilgrims 
made their way to stone the devil at Jamarat on subsequent 
days, many national delegations traveled in large groups, 
wearing matching garb and carrying their national flags in a 
spectacle reminiscent of the parade of nations at the opening 
ceremony of the Olympic Games. 
 
 
COMPLETION OF THE NEW RAILWAY EAGERLY ANTICIPATED 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶9.    (SBU) In conversations among themselves pilgrims 
frequently complained about congestion on the roads between 
the Hajj sites of Arafat, Muzdalifah and Mina.  Many reported 
spending 5 hours on busses during peak hours between the 
major sites, all of which are no more than three miles apart. 
 
JEDDAH 00000466  003.2 OF 004 
 
 
 With the construction of a railway system connecting the 
sites underway, the problem has clearly not been ignored. 
Noticing the railway,s support columns already erected at 
several points, pilgrims expressed excitement about the 
project, believing the train would dramatically reduce 
congestion and make future pilgrimages less strenuous. 
Despite complaints about long bus rides, few pilgrims seemed 
to allow such difficulties to affect their generally high 
spirits.  When Poloff recalled that he spent 4 hours on a 
bus, one pilgrim jokingly replied: "I spent 6 hours on a bus 
last night...you had it good!"  The overall mood was to make 
light of the inconvenience. 
 
¶10.   (SBU) On the streets outside the Holy Mosque and at 
Mina, small-time Saudi entrepreneurs use the pilgrimage as an 
opportunity to make extra money by offering pilgrims shuttle 
services.  Prices for rides between Mina and the Holy Mosque 
ranged from 10 to 30 Riyals ($3-8) during the first day of 
Hajj; however, prices escalated during the remaining days to 
levels close to 100 Riyals ($26), as drivers grasped that 
pilgrims, tired and exhausted from performing the rites, 
would pay almost anything to avoid walking. 
 
 
THE TENT CITY OF MINA 
---------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) Poloff, along with most pilgrims, spent three 
nights -- the first and the last two -- in the tent city of 
Mina, which at first glance resembles a large refugee camp, 
thousands of large tents arranged next to each other in an 
area beginning near King Abdulaziz Bridge and stretching east 
to the Jamarat Bridge.  Camping areas are divided along 
nationality lines with delegations from each country 
occupying groups of adjoining tents.  Other tent groupings 
are reserved for organizations such as the Organization of 
the Islamic Conference (OIC), in which members share 
facilities.  Most tents are fitted simply with rugs for 
sleeping and a small restroom area (toilets and showers). 
Higher budget delegations, including royal and ministerial 
parties, tend to have larger, more luxurious tents equipped 
with small beds and upgraded restrooms.  Poorer pilgrims 
sleep on the streets in any area they can mark out for 
themselves. 
 
¶12. (SBU) As the flow of traffic slowed in the evenings, some 
pilgrim areas were transformed into bustling market areas as 
vendors, both Saudi and expatriate, lined the street selling 
cheap clothes, jewelery, and souvenirs.  On the east side of 
the tent city, several fast food restaurants had set up 
temporary facilities catering to pilgrims. One local 
restaurant chain, Al-Baik, known for its chicken, had three 
or four locations along the route to the Jamarat and was 
crowded with customers all day. 
 
 
WEEPING ON ARAFAT 
----------------- 
 
¶13.   (SBU) The second day of the Hajj, considered the most 
important, is known as the Day of Arafat, on which pilgrims 
head towards the Plain of Arafat, near Mount Arafat where the 
Prophet Muhammad delivered his final sermon. Here worshippers 
spend the day in tents praying, reading the Quran and 
reflecting on their lives. Towards the end of the afternoon 
most pilgrims exited their tents and faced in the direction 
of the Ka'aba to begin offering supplications until sunset. 
Believing that all prayers on Arafat are answered, pilgrims 
pray especially earnestly at this point in the Hajj, many 
weeping and shaking with emotion while directing silent 
petitions to the Almighty. 
 
 
MUZDALIFAH 
----------- 
 
¶14.   (SBU) After leaving Arafat, pilgrims go directly to the 
site known as Muzdalifah, a flat plain on the open desert. 
Here pilgrims collect 49 pebbles for the &stoning of the 
devil8 ritual (7 to stone the big devil on the first visit 
to the Jamarat and 7 to stone all three devils -- big, 
medium, small -- on the next two days).  After collecting 
 
JEDDAH 00000466  004.2 OF 004 
 
 
their stones most worshippers spend the night sleeping on the 
desert floor under the open sky. In what looks like a massive 
camping trip, pilgrims could be seen rushing off their busses 
in Muzdalifah to find places to sleep.  A few pilgrims 
brought small camping tents; however, the majority were 
equipped with no more than a sleeping bag or a blanket and 
some with only their Ihram (the two-piece pilgrimage garb). 
Surprisingly, there was no attempt to separate the sexes in 
Muzdalifah; unrelated men and women sometimes slept within 
two or three feet of each other, with no one objecting or 
seeming to mind. 
 
 
INFORMAL DISCUSSIONS HIGHLIGHT RELIGIOUS 
---------------------------------------- 
 
AND CULTURAL DIVIDES: SAUDI/AMERICAN, SUNNI/SHIA 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶15.   (C) Although there are no formal lectures or religious 
discussions during the Hajj, many pilgrims gather in tents in 
Mina and Arafat to hold informal discussions on religious 
issues.  Some Americans said they were disturbed by the 
comments from a Saudi sheikh who was invited to speak at the 
American camp.  The Wahhabi sheikh reportedly told the 
Americans that many of them were not practicing the religion 
correctly, adding that &a man should never touch a woman who 
was not a family member and that a woman should never show 
her face in public.8 
 
¶16.   (C) Poloff overheard other conversations in the OIC 
camp, including derogatory remarks about the practices of 
Shia who were praying nearby.  One pilgrim scoffed at the 
Shia rituals while another pilgrim quoted a famous Quranic 
verse urging tolerance:  &To you be your way, to me be 
mine.8 
 
¶17.   (SBU) Despite several threats to do so, Iranian 
pilgrims did not mount conspicuous protests or demonstrations 
during the Hajj; however, several papers reported that 
thousands of Iranians chanted: "Death to America! Death to 
Israel!8 during an address by Ayatollah Muhammad Rishari in 
the delegation's tent on the Plain of Arafat, in what appears 
to have been an isolated incident. 
 
 
HAJJ STATE OF MIND: "EVER AT YOUR SERVICE, O GOD" 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶18.  (SBU) Despite having to endure the challenge and 
discomfort of maneuvering through large crowds and the 
inconvenience of sleeping in tents and sleeping bags over the 
course of five days, almost all pilgrims seemed to remain 
calm and easygoing throughout the pilgrimage. Incidents of 
personality clashes or ethnic friction were extremely rare. 
Pilgrims from around the world who had never met frequently 
developed instant rapport with one another.  Large groups 
making their way through the streets of Mecca and Mina could 
be heard harmoniously chanting the Hajj chant: "Labaik 
alahuma labaik" ("Ever at your service, O God, ever at your 
service"). Even the normally strict, officious Saudi security 
guards stationed throughout the sites for crowd control 
seemed to be in the gentle, forbearing Hajj spirit, 
manifesting patience with those who disobeyed orders and 
congratulating pilgrims as they completed their rites. 
 
¶19.   (C) COMMENT:  The Saudi Arabian Government once again 
demonstrated its knack for efficiently managing the two to 
three million pilgrims who visit the Kingdom for Hajj.  Some 
of this success is a result of attentiveness to the need for 
infrastructural improvements such as the Jamarat Bridge and 
the imminent railway to make pilgrimage more efficient and 
less arduous.  However, the smooth movement of large crowds 
seems as much due to (1) the easy-going atmosphere that SAG 
officials promote and (2) the compliant state of mind of the 
majority of Hajj pilgrims.  END SUMMARY. 
QUINN