Saudi Arabia receives 1,2-million pilgrims for hajj

Over one million Muslims have arrived in Saudi Arabia for the annual haj pilgrimage amid tight security in the kingdom, which is battling Islamic militants.

The official Saudi Press Agency said on Monday that 1,2-million people had arrived so far for the five-day rites which are expected to begin on December 18. Most arrive by air at the port city of Jeddah.

At least 1,5-million people are expected to arrive from abroad in the Islamic holy city of Mecca, where pilgrims follow a route around the mountains in line with a tradition established by the Prophet Muhammad.

A duty for every Muslim at least once in a lifetime, the gruelling ritual is one of the world’s biggest displays of mass religious devotion.

But it has been marred in previous years by deadly stampedes amid overcrowding, fires, hotel collapses and police clashes with protesters.

The authorities are also wary of militant attacks.

Al-Qaeda-linked militants launched a campaign to destabilise the United States-allied monarchy in 2003, and the government last month said they had arrested 208 suspects planning attacks on oil targets, clerics and security forces. - Reuters