Pulling off a seamless Hajj experience is a complex logistical task, even without a global pandemic raging. Keeping this year’s 60,000 pilgrims on time and socially distanced is the work of thousands of volunteers and workers, with many women leading the charge.
The National spoke to some of the women keeping Hajj on track.
Emergency call centre workers
The 911 call centre in Makkah has a designated women’s section, covering all sorts of emergencies and dispatching help. Women began working there in 2017, and the female workforce works in three shift patterns of around 20 women each.
“During Hajj, the number of calls increases. For example, when a few pilgrims get lost or need any medical help,” said 911 women section supervisor Rana Tayeb.
“During Hajj, we increase the number of people on shifts to handle the increased calls, it is a great responsibility and honour for us to make sure they do their Hajj safely.”
Medical volunteers
This year, 331 medical practitioners, including 160 women, are volunteering in four groups.
Specialists are based at the East Arafat hospital, a second group is assigned to work at six clinics in the holy site, the third group ensures Covid-19 protocols are observed in all steps of the journey, and the fourth takes care of preventive medicine.
Nurse Sara Al Shamari is based at the Grand Mosque of Makkah, her second placement as a volunteer.
“If a pilgrim doesn’t look well, we will be the first response team,” she said.
“This volunteering experience of serving God’s guests is like a badge of honour,” she added.
Ms Al Shamari travelled all the way from Dammam — 1,300 kilometres away in the east of the kingdom — to Makkah, just to volunteer for Hajj.
Medical staff
There are 1,000 health practitioners working in four hospitals and six health clinics at the holy sites of Mina, Arafat and Muzlifa, with women making up a large proportion.
Dr Zahra Al Srori, 26, and her friend Dr Tasneem Eid both decided to work this Hajj.
“This is our first time” Ms Al Srori said, with Ms Eid adding it “definitely won’t be our last!”
They are working at the emergency room at Al Rahamh hospital in Arafat. It is a crucial hospital that enables pilgrims to continue their Hajj even if they are unwell, as just being in Arafat is enough for their Hajj to be accepted.
“When the pilgrims pray for us after we help them, it gives me goose bumps. Their prayers and words are so sincere,” Ms Al Srori said.
Nurse Taya Abdulsalam has been working every Hajj for 14 years. This year she is working in the Mina Al Wadi hospital.
“We offer the pilgrims all the necessary medical and nursing services to facilitate their pilgrimage and ensure they’re healthy,” she said.
Ms Abdulsalam keeps returning to work Hajj every year, despite its difficulty, because it is an experience like no other for her.
“The good thing about working during Hajj season is that we, the medical staff, experience a unique spiritual feeling.”
Tour guides
The Arabic word “teewafah” refers to someone who guides pilgrims around the mosques of Makkah, but the job description of Moutawef is much broader. They are like the tour guides of Hajj.
Men and women take on this role, and are with the pilgrims step by step as they do their Hajj, offering help with everything from logistics to religious matters, from the moment they set foot in Makkah.
Logistics
There are 71 camps for pilgrims at each holy site this year. There is a women-only section, staffed by women who take care of pilgrims' food, cleaning and general logistics needs.
“This is my fourth year as a camp supervisor. My role is to ensure all the pilgrims' needs are met in the camp, from the simple stuff like where are the Qibla directions to any medical help they need and the times of movements,” said Amal AabdulRahman.
She explained how Hajj's hardship sometimes leads people to be stressed and tired, and this is a challenge for her.
“You need to make sure they feel settled in the camp and well rested. I need to provide everything for them, so they are free for their worship.”
Security
Women soldiers are taking many roles in this year’s Hajj. Among them is soldier Abeer Al Rashed, who conducted the country's first-ever female-led security forces briefing for Hajj last week.
Eighty female officers work at Makkah’s Grand Mosque, where the pilgrims perform Tawaf to start their Hajj and another to end it.
Their roles in the holy mosque include maintaining security and safety operations, managing crowds in all the hallways, yards and floors of the grand mosque. They also check pilgrims are adhering to precautionary measures, such as social distancing and wearing masks.
Civil defence female officers are also working this Hajj, as safety inspectors for the holy sites.
Their role is to patrol the pilgrims' campus before worshippers arrive in the holy sites and during their stay to make sure all safety and fire protection protocols are met.
Media
Reem Khalid, 25, is a media co-ordinator. Her role is to accompany international journalists on the ground as they cover the pilgrimage.
This is the first time Ms Khalid has worked during Hajj, a goal she had wanted to achieve for five years.
“I tried many times to be a volunteer in Hajj and didn't get lucky, then I got this job, and the opportunity came to me.”
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
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Abu Dhabi GP Saturday schedule
12.30pm GP3 race (18 laps)
2pm Formula One final practice
5pm Formula One qualifying
6.40pm Formula 2 race (31 laps)
Women’s T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier
ICC Academy, November 22-28
UAE fixtures
Nov 22, v Malaysia
Nov 23, v Hong Kong
Nov 25, v Bhutan
Nov 26, v Kuwait
Nov 28, v Nepal
ICC T20I rankings
14. Nepal
17. UAE
25. Hong Kong
34. Kuwait
35. Malaysia
44. Bhutan
UAE squad
Chaya Mughal (captain), Natasha Cherriath, Samaira Dharnidharka, Kavisha Egodage, Mahika Gaur, Priyanjali Jain, Suraksha Kotte, Vaishnave Mahesh, Judit Peter, Esha Rohit, Theertha Satish, Chamani Seneviratne, Khushi Sharma, Subha Venkataraman
Biog:
Age: 34
Favourite superhero: Batman
Favourite sport: anything extreme
Favourite person: Muhammad Ali
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Company profile
Date started: Founded in May 2017 and operational since April 2018
Founders: co-founder and chief executive, Doaa Aref; Dr Rasha Rady, co-founder and chief operating officer.
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: Health-tech
Size: 22 employees
Funding: Seed funding
Investors: Flat6labs, 500 Falcons, three angel investors
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Bangladesh tour of Pakistan
January 24 – First T20, Lahore
January 25 – Second T20, Lahore
January 27 – Third T20, Lahore
February 7-11 – First Test, Rawalpindi
April 3 – One-off ODI, Karachi
April 5-9 – Second Test, Karachi
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
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Cutting red tape on import and export of food
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Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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How to volunteer
The UAE volunteers campaign can be reached at www.volunteers.ae , or by calling 800-VOLAE (80086523), or emailing info@volunteers.ae.
If you go
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Seattle from Dh5,555 return, including taxes. Portland is a 260 km drive from Seattle and Emirates offers codeshare flights to Portland with its partner Alaska Airlines.
The car
Hertz (www.hertz.ae) offers compact car rental from about $300 per week, including taxes. Emirates Skywards members can earn points on their car hire through Hertz.
Parks and accommodation
For information on Crater Lake National Park, visit www.nps.gov/crla/index.htm . Because of the altitude, large parts of the park are closed in winter due to snow. While the park’s summer season is May 22-October 31, typically, the full loop of the Rim Drive is only possible from late July until the end of October. Entry costs $25 per car for a day. For accommodation, see www.travelcraterlake.com. For information on Umpqua Hot Springs, see www.fs.usda.gov and https://soakoregon.com/umpqua-hot-springs/. For Bend, see https://www.visitbend.com/.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Villains
Queens of the Stone Age
Matador
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
HWJN
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- A fuel tax protest by French drivers appealed to wider anti-government sentiment
- Unlike previous French demonstrations there was no trade union or organised movement involved
- Demonstrators responded to online petitions and flooded squares to block traffic
- At its height there were almost 300,000 on the streets in support
- Named after the high visibility jackets that drivers must keep in cars
- Clashes soon turned violent as thousands fought with police at cordons
- An estimated two dozen people lost eyes and many others were admitted to hospital
RESULTS
Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
Welterweight
Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
Super heavyweight
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• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
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• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
