Thousands of pilgrims are arriving in Saudi Arabia every day ahead of Hajj season.
This year, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah has launched the “Proclaim to the People” initiative. It is being used as a hashtag in all social media posts.
The ministry regularly uploads videos on social media to guide pilgrims on the etiquette and rituals of Hajj.
From “not leaving your belongings” to “keeping your official documents safely with you”, the ministry hopes this will help guide first-time pilgrims.
Where did 'Proclaim to the People' come from?
The slogan echoes the call made by God in the Quran to the Prophet Ibrahim and the Prophet Mohammed, to inform Muslims around the world of the Hajj pilgrimage.
In the holy Quran, God commands Muslims to perform Hajj once in their lifetime.
“And proclaim the Hajj to all the people: they will come to you on foot and on lean camels, coming from distant places,” the Quran says.
The verse signifies the importance of the Hajj pilgrimage for Muslims, regardless of their race. It is mandatory for all Muslims who are financially and physically able.
The term “lean camels” refers to what was then the main mode of transport, by which pilgrims would arrive in Makkah.
A ministry official said the campaign was launched to help signify the importance of service for Hajj, which is an honour for Saudi Arabia and its people.
Khalid Osamah, a Hajj operator in Jeddah, told The National that “Proclaim to the People” is a slogan that “defines the kingdom's position while managing Hajj”.
“Because Hajj is compulsory, you have to come any way possible,” he said.
“Back then it was on foot, camels and now through modern transportation. But one already knows it will be a strenuous journey, not easy.
“And so we are here to guide pilgrims who are coming for the first time in their lives how to properly perform all rituals. We also have male and female guides in every camp to help clear any queries.”
A video posted by the ministry on Twitter last week demonstrates how to wear the Ihram, the two white pieces of unstitched cloth worn by male pilgrims.
Pilgrims should be particularly careful this year with Hajj taking place in summer and temperatures expected to reach 50°C, the ministry said.
Another video shows a passport falling out of a bag carried by a pilgrim, with a message saying “take care and safeguard your belongings”.
Hussein Taha, secretary general of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation, said that two million pilgrims from 57 countries will perform Hajj this year, numbers last seen before the pandemic.
On Tuesday, the OIC will meet Saudi Minister of Hajj and Umrah Tawfiq Al Rabiah. The meeting, attended by delegates, representatives and consuls of OIC member states, aims to highlight the “tremendous efforts made by Saudi Arabia to serve pilgrims”.
Mr Al Rabiah will speak about measures taken to ensure a well-organised Hajj.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
FIXTURES
All times UAE ( 4 GMT)
Friday
Saint-Etienne v Montpellier (10.45pm)
Saturday
Monaco v Caen (7pm)
Amiens v Bordeaux (10pm)
Angers v Toulouse (10pm)
Metz v Dijon (10pm)
Nantes v Guingamp (10pm)
Rennes v Lille (10pm)
Sunday
Nice v Strasbourg (5pm)
Troyes v Lyon (7pm)
Marseille v Paris Saint-Germain (11pm)
LAST-16 EUROPA LEAGUE FIXTURES
Wednesday (Kick-offs UAE)
FC Copenhagen (0) v Istanbul Basaksehir (1) 8.55pm
Shakhtar Donetsk (2) v Wolfsburg (1) 8.55pm
Inter Milan v Getafe (one leg only) 11pm
Manchester United (5) v LASK (0) 11pm
Thursday
Bayer Leverkusen (3) v Rangers (1) 8.55pm
Sevilla v Roma (one leg only) 8.55pm
FC Basel (3) v Eintracht Frankfurt (0) 11pm
Wolves (1) Olympiakos (1) 11pm
What is Folia?
Prince Khaled bin Alwaleed bin Talal's new plant-based menu will launch at Four Seasons hotels in Dubai this November. A desire to cater to people looking for clean, healthy meals beyond green salad is what inspired Prince Khaled and American celebrity chef Matthew Kenney to create Folia. The word means "from the leaves" in Latin, and the exclusive menu offers fine plant-based cuisine across Four Seasons properties in Los Angeles, Bahrain and, soon, Dubai.
Kenney specialises in vegan cuisine and is the founder of Plant Food Wine and 20 other restaurants worldwide. "I’ve always appreciated Matthew’s work," says the Saudi royal. "He has a singular culinary talent and his approach to plant-based dining is prescient and unrivalled. I was a fan of his long before we established our professional relationship."
Folia first launched at The Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in July 2018. It is available at the poolside Cabana Restaurant and for in-room dining across the property, as well as in its private event space. The food is vibrant and colourful, full of fresh dishes such as the hearts of palm ceviche with California fruit, vegetables and edible flowers; green hearb tacos filled with roasted squash and king oyster barbacoa; and a savoury coconut cream pie with macadamia crust.
In March 2019, the Folia menu reached Gulf shores, as it was introduced at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, where it is served at the Bay View Lounge. Next, on Tuesday, November 1 – also known as World Vegan Day – it will come to the UAE, to the Four Seasons Resort Dubai at Jumeirah Beach and the Four Seasons DIFC, both properties Prince Khaled has spent "considerable time at and love".
There are also plans to take Folia to several more locations throughout the Middle East and Europe.
While health-conscious diners will be attracted to the concept, Prince Khaled is careful to stress Folia is "not meant for a specific subset of customers. It is meant for everyone who wants a culinary experience without the negative impact that eating out so often comes with."
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Top tips to avoid cyber fraud
Microsoft’s ‘hacker-in-chief’ David Weston, creator of the tech company’s Windows Red Team, advises simple steps to help people avoid falling victim to cyber fraud:
1. Always get the latest operating system on your smartphone or desktop, as it will have the latest innovations. An outdated OS can erode away all investments made in securing your device or system.
2. After installing the latest OS version, keep it patched; this means repairing system vulnerabilities which are discovered after the infrastructure components are released in the market. The vast majority of attacks are based on out of date components – there are missing patches.
3. Multi-factor authentication is required. Move away from passwords as fast as possible, particularly for anything financial. Cybercriminals are targeting money through compromising the users’ identity – his username and password. So, get on the next level of security using fingertips or facial recognition.
4. Move your personal as well as professional data to the cloud, which has advanced threat detection mechanisms and analytics to spot any attempt. Even if you are hit by some ransomware, the chances of restoring the stolen data are higher because everything is backed up.
5. Make the right hardware selection and always refresh it. We are in a time where a number of security improvement processes are reliant on new processors and chip sets that come with embedded security features. Buy a new personal computer with a trusted computing module that has fingerprint or biometric cameras as additional measures of protection.
