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An
Item of Interest from SUSRIS
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 The
Hajj and Its Impact on Saudi Arabia
and the Muslim World
By
David E. Long
"Each
year, 2 million Muslims perform the
Hajj, or Great Pilgrimage to Makkah.
One of the Five Pillars of Islam,
the Hajj is required of all
believers once in their lifetimes
provided they are physically,
mentally and financially able.
For the duration of the Hajj and the
traditional visit to al-Madinah
afterward, the Saudi government must
insure that the Hajjis are provided
with adequate housing (mainly in
tents), food, water, health and
sanitation, ground transportation,
and public safety and
security.."
[more]
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An
Item of Interest from SUSRIS
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 Time
to Bring Home Arab Human Development
By
Rami G. Khouri
The
United Nations Development Program
(UNDP) issued a press release on
December 22, 2004 that received
little attention in the US media.
The scant press reporting was
remarkable given that it was an
effort to defuse speculation about
suppression of an independent UNDP
report by the U.S. Government.
That day, however, the case was
reported by Rami Khouri, Executive
Editor of The Daily Star
(Beirut). We thank Mr. Khouri
for permission to share his report
with our readers. In it he
discusses the UNDP/US Government
case, the background of the UNDP's
Arab Human Development Reports and
sets forth his recommendation
"to establish a new,
independent, pan-Arab think tank --
an Arab Human Development
Center."
[more]
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An
Item of Interest from SUSRIS
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 The
Hajj in Perspective:
A Conversation with David
Long
"..the
Hajj creates an
opportunity for non
Muslims and people who
don't know much about
Islam -- particularly
those people who have
a totally negative view of
Muslims.. that this is a
gathering of two million
faithful people in a
joyous time in the 21st
century.."
[more]
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In
the News
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Saudi
Arabian floods
claim lives
[BBC]
"Eight
people have been
killed by
torrential rains
and flash floods
in the western
Saudi Arabian
city of
Medina.."
[more]
Saudi
Arabia hosts a
conference for
fighting
terrorism next
month
[ArabicNews]
"The
Saudi King Fahd
Bin Abdul Aziz
and Crown Prince
Abdullah Bin
Abdul Aziz have
called for
international
cooperation to
fight terrorism.
They confirmed
in this regard,
al-Riyadh's
hosting of an
international
conference to
fight terrorism
to be held on
February 5
through
7.."
[more]
Saudi
couturier hopes
to inspire young
Arab designers
[AFP]
"Bishri
hopes to set an
example for
young designers
in the Arab
world.
'The target is
not only to be
famous or to
come to Paris.
We have so many
talented people
in Saudi Arabia.
It's time to
show it,' he
says.."
[more]
Saudi
Arabia offers to
host OIC summit
[AFP]
"Saudi
Arabia urged the
Organization of
the Islamic
Conference (OIC)
on Friday to
organize a
meeting of
Muslim leaders
in the kingdom
that would seek
to heal rifts in
the Islamic
world.."
[more]
Saudi
offers five
aircraft, 100
million dollars
in tsunami
relief aid [TurkishPress.com]
Saudi Arabia
is offering
Indonesia five
of its aircraft
to be used in
the tsunami
relief operation
and has pledged
100 million
dollars in
aid.."
[more]
Birthplace
of Islam
celebrates
openness,
diversity [NY
Times]
"..Rare
in most of the
Muslim world,
the willingness
to debate and
raise seemingly
taboo questions
is standard here
in the
birthplace of
Islam and the
site of the
hajj.."
[more]
Kuwait
launches hunt
for 'militants'
[Gulf Daily
News]
"..Saudi
Interior
Minister Prince
Nayef has been
quoted as saying
that the attacks
in Kuwait were
an extension of
events in Saudi
Arabia and were
"from the
same
source".. [more]
Saudi
mosque bombing
bid foiled [AlJazeera.net]
Saudi security
forces are
hunting three
men suspected
to be al-Qaida
members after
thwarting what
they believe was
an attempt to
blow up a mosque
in the
kingdom.."
[more]
Saudi
sheik says
militants 'lured
by the devil'
[AP]
"Raising
their hands to
the sky, about
two million
Muslim pilgrims
prayed for
salvation
yesterday at
Mount Arafat,
where Saudi
Arabia's top
cleric said the
greatest test
for the nation
of Islam comes
from its sons
who are
"lured by
the devil,"
a reference to
militants.."
[more]
US
judge dismisses
Saudi 9/11 case
[AlJazeera.net]
Ruling that the
plaintiffs did
not provide
sufficient proof
of alleged
involvement on
Wednesday,
district court
Judge Richard
Conway Casey
cleared numerous
leading Saudi
officials and
financial
institutions of
any wrong-doing.
[more]
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On
the Web
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 The
Hajj -- As
discussed in Dr.
David Long's essay
and the SUSRIS
interview
with him last
week Saudi
Arabia hosted
over two million
pilgrims in
Mecca for the
annual Hajj, a
basic obligation
of Islam.
Today's
newsletter
provides links
to on-line
articles of
interest about
this year's
Hajj.
Muslims
complete the
Hajj [Wash
Times]
"Last
week, an
estimated 10,000
American Muslims
joined about 2.5
million
co-religionists
worldwide in the
observance of
one of the
pillars of their
faith,
Hajj.." [more]
Pilgrims
welcome rain
that lashes
Saudi desert as
hajj draws to a
close [AP]
"As
rains lashed the
Saudi desert,
tens of
thousands of
drenched Muslim
pilgrims
welcomed the
deluge Saturday
as an act of God
while they
circled the
cubic Kaaba
shrine in this
holy city's
Grand Mosque,
the final rite
in the annual
hajj
pilgrimage.."
[more]
Hajj:
The journey of a
lifetime
[Charlotte
Observer]
"More than
2 million
Muslims make
this pilgrimage
each year. To
see such a
diverse group of
humanity from
vastly different
cultures,
colors, nations
and walks of
life coming
together,
practicing the
same religious
rites and
worshipping the
same God (Allah)
is more
beautiful than
any
rainbow.."
[more]
A
Texan's
pilgrimage to
Mecca [Houston
Chronicle]
"..I
represented hope
- hope that
Islam's true
face can be
uncovered
despite the
current events
and media
distortions.
Hope, that we as
Americans know
that Muslims do
not hate us. And
hope that we do
not hate the
followers of the
true teachings
of Islam.
I was more than
accepted. All
the people I met
wanted - and
almost needed -
to see someone
like me.
In the end, the
family that
Islam creates
was stronger
than I
anticipated, and
the people I met
who were
creating the
most diverse
crowd on the
Earth were just
that,
people.."
[more]
Troops
help ease hajj
turbulence in
Afghanistan
[Stars &
Stripes]
"'The
Afghans have
done very well,'
said Marine Maj.
John Forti, who
is heading up
the U.S.
military effort
to assist the
Afghan
government. Much
the same could
be said of U.S.
personnel
helping in the
effort. Scores
of commercial
flights from
four locations
in Afghanistan -
Kabul, Kandahar,
Mazar-e-Sharif
and Herat - have
been coordinated
in some way or
another by Air
Force, Army and
Marine
personnel.."
[more]
For
more Hajj
headlines visit
the SUSRIS web
site. [Click
here]
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About
the Saudi-US Relations Information
Service
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The
Saudi-U.S. Relations Information
Service (SUSRIS) provides you
information resources and
interactive features through a Web
site and weekly newsletter -- all
designed to enhance your
understanding of the historic
relationship between the United
States and Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi-U.S. Relations Information
Service is a public service of the
National Council on U.S.-Arab
Relations as an element of its
mission to educate Americans about
Arab countries, the Middle East, and
the Islamic world.
We
invite you to explore the site:
signup for the SUSRIS newsletter,
join the discussion forum, browse
the bookshelf and photo album, and
more. Make the SUSRIS your home page
or add it to your Favorites List.
Check back from time to time to see
what we've added -- what you see
today is just the beginning.
For
more information about the service
please visit the website at: http://www.SaudiUSRelations.org
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