コロナで規模縮小のメッカ大巡礼が終了　サウジアラビア

【メッカＡＦＰ＝時事】イスラム教の聖地メッカへの大巡礼「ハッジ」が、2日に最終日を迎え、巡礼者はソーシャル・ディスタンシング（対人距離の確保）を守りながら最も神聖なカーバ神殿の周りを回った。新型コロナウイルスの感染拡大を防ぐため、サウジアラビア当局は例年に比べ規模を大幅に縮小していた。（写真はサウジアラビア・メッカの聖モスクで、カーバ神殿の周りを回る巡礼者ら）
　今年のハッジには最大で１万人が参加。５日間にわたって行われるハッジには昨年は約２５０万人が参加し、これに比べるとごく少数だ。
　巡礼者はソーシャル・ディスタンシングの順守を義務付けられ、定期的に検温を受けた。当局によると、ハッジ終了後には巡礼者に隔離が義務付けられるという。
　ハッジを行うには通常数千ドルの資金が必要なため、巡礼者の多くは数年間かけて貯金する。また、参加するためには長い順番待ちに耐えなければならない。
　だが巡礼者らによると、今年はサウジ政府が巡礼者全員の費用を負担し、食事や宿泊施設、医療サービスを提供したという。【翻訳編集ＡＦＰＢＢＮｅｗｓ】
〔ＡＦＰ＝時事〕（2020/08/04-13:14）

Muslim pilgrims circled Islam's holiest site along socially distanced paths Sunday in the final ritual of the hajj, the smallest in modern history as Saudi authorities sought to prevent a coronavirus outbreak.
Only up to 10,000 Muslims took part in the hajj, a far cry from the 2.5 million who took part in the five-day annual pilgrimage last year.
Masked pilgrims threw pebbles at a wall symbolising Satan in Mina, close to the holy city of Mecca, on the final day of hajj, state media reported.
Instead of gathering the pebbles themselves as in past years, they were handed them bagged and sterilised by hajj authorities, to protect against the novel coronavirus.
Pilgrims returned to the Grand Mosque in Mecca later Sunday to perform a final tawaf, or circling of the Kaaba -- a cubic structure towards which Muslims around the world pray.
Holding the ritual in the shadow of the pandemic required double efforts by Saudi authorities, King Salman said on Friday after being discharged from hospital following surgery to remove his gall bladder.
The hajj this year was restricted to a very limited number of people from multiple nationalities, ensuring the ritual was completed despite the difficult circumstances, said the kingdom's 84-year-old ruler.
Health authorities said no coronavirus cases were reported at the holy sites during the hajj.
The pilgrims, who were required to observe social distancing and subjected to regular temperature checks, will go into mandatory quarantine after the hajj, authorities said.
The ritual, one of the five pillars of Islam and a must for able-bodied Muslims at least once in their lifetime, is usually one of the world's largest religious gatherings.
But local media said up to 10,000 people already residing in the kingdom were participating this year.
The hajj ministry had initially said around 1,000 pilgrims would be allowed.
The hajj typically costs thousands of dollars for pilgrims, who often save for years as well as endure long waiting lists for a chance to attend.
But this year, the Saudi government is covering the expenses of all pilgrims, providing them with meals, hotel accommodation and health care, worshippers said.