MADINAH: The Ministry of Islamic Affairs branch in Madinah has implemented its plans for the 2017 Hajj season.
Sheikh Fahd Al-Tuwaijri, the director general of the branch, affirmed that preparations for welcoming pilgrims started early on, and involved meetings with officials, supervisors of mosques, and maintenance organizations.
Many field visits were reportedly conducted to mosques in Madinah, such as the Masjid Al-Qiblatayn, and actions were taken to improve the conditions and provide the best environment for visitors.
These concluded with a visit to Miqat Mosque with the ministry’s director general of maintenance, to ensure that the facilities are available to allow pilgrims to perform their rites with ease and comfort.
Al-Tuwaijri added that the Saudi government does its best to overcome any difficulties pilgrims may face in performing Hajj with peace and comfort, regardless of their nationality. Calls for politicizing and internationalizing Hajj will certainly fail, as with all other previous attempts, Al-Tuwaijri added.
Al-Tuwaijri prayed for the protection of Saudi Arabia and its leaders and for the safety and safe return of pilgrims to their home countries.
Madinah branch of Islamic Affairs Ministry implements 2017 Hajj plan
Madinah branch of Islamic Affairs Ministry implements 2017 Hajj plan
Saudi Arabia welcomes ceasefire agreement between Syrian Democratic Forces and Syria state
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has welcomed an agreement between the Syrian state and Syrian Democratic Forces.
In a foreign ministry statement early on Monday, the Kingdom said it had welcomed an deal between Damascus and Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces that was announced by the Syrian government on Sunday.
The agreement entails merging all SDF forces into the defense and interior ministries and means that Kurdish forces will redeploy to east of the Euphrates river.
The 14-point deal would also see the immediate administrative and military handover of Deir Ezzor and Raqqa governorates.
The Syrian state would regain control of all border crossings, oil fields, and gas fields in the region, with protection secured by regular forces to ensure the return of resources to the Syrian government, while considering the special case of Kurdish areas, the state news agency SANA reported.
The ceasefire comes after intense fighting between the SDF and government troops in Aleppo. But SDF troops have now pulled back from there and the Syrian army now controls most areas east of Aleppo.
The Saudi foreign ministry statement also thanked the US for the agreement. Washington is believed to have supported brokering the ceasefire between allies SDF and the Syrian government, who they have also backed diplomatically since the fall of long-time dictator Bashar Assad.
The Syrian state announced on Friday a raft of new directives to recognize Syrian Kurds, including making their language official and bolstering other rights for the minority group.
