Pilgrims perform devil-stoning ritual

MINA, Saudi Arabia -- Over and over, the loudspeakers urged, "Please walk slowly, please don't push each other," and security guards funneled the crowds into manageable streams as tens of thousands of Muslim pilgrims converged on stone pillars Friday to cast pebbles in a rite of purification.

The always incredibly crowded ritual was even more so this year: A record 2.56 million pilgrims are taking part in the annual hajj pilgrimage, a half million more than the previous high, set in 2003, the Interior Ministry said.

"It was really crowded down there. I could hardly breathe," said Jibran al-Qahtani, a 35-year-old Saudi pilgrim, said after throwing his stones at the pillars, which represent the devil, carrying out one of the main rituals of the hajj.

"I hit the devil with all the strength of my body," said Mohammed Hanif, 26, a Pakistani, after throwing pebbles the size of chick peas.

"It must have really hurt him. But the thing is, he keeps coming back for more," Hanif added with a chuckle.

But the crowd was controlled and there were no injuries Friday, an Interior Ministry official said, as Saudi authorities showed their determination to prevent the deadly stampedes that have occurred in the past at the ritual.

Last year, 244 people were trampled to death when the crowd panicked during the stoning ritual.

The ritual is a notorious bottleneck during the hajj. At its peak, as it was between 1 and 5 p.m. Friday, up to 160,000 people an hour pass over the footbridge leading to the pillars, said Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki.

As pilgrims pause to throw their pebbles, more are filing in.

After last year's stampede, authorities widened the walkways approaching the site to 80 yards across to reduce congestion.

In their most noticeable effort to improve access, the Saudis have rebuilt the three pillars. In past years they resembled obelisks, 32 inches square at the base. Now they are stone walls 26 yards long, allowing a much larger number of people to pelt them with pebbles at the same time.

Al-Turki ascribed the increase in turnout to bigger numbers of domestic pilgrims -- Saudis and foreigners living in the kingdom -- as well as an increase in pilgrims from abroad. Foreign countries were now filling their quotas or nearly filling them, he said.

The Interior Ministry said 112,000 more pilgrims than last year came from abroad, an increase of 8 percent. The total from abroad was 1.53 million pilgrims.

On Saturday -- the third and final day for the stoning ritual -- al-Turki said the crowd around the pillars could reach "critical density."

The pilgrims have only until sundown to perform the ritual on Saturday, instead of midnight, meaning they will be in more of a rush to get it completed.

"We will do our best to make sure that no incidents such as the stampede last year are repeated," he said. Some 10,000 police, civil defense personnel and soldiers are on duty at Mina, and more than 20 ambulances were parked near the pillars Friday.

The authorities can quickly deploy more guards "in case things get out of hand," al-Turki said.

The pilgrimage begins with the circling of the Kaaba, the large cubic stone structure in Mecca that Muslims face during their five daily prayers. Pilgrims then go to the nearby Mount Arafat, where Islam's 7th century prophet Muhammad gave his last sermon in A.D. 632, three months before his death.

After finishing the stoning ritual, pilgrims will go to the Grand Mosque in Mecca on Saturday night and Sunday. The pilgrims will circle the Kaaba, the black cubical structure in the middle of the Grand Mosque, seven times in the final act of the hajj.

Some pilgrims will then spend time visiting holy sites in Mecca and Medina, about 280 miles north of Mecca.