Saudi hospitality steals the heart of Iraqi Shiite pilgrim

By Mohammed Al-Aklabi MINA — Faleh Al-Safi, an Iraqi Shiite lawyer, who was here for the Haj had distorted ideas about the Saudi people. But his stay here has cleared all his misconception and he is now leaving the Kingdom satisfied that all is not that bad about Saudi Arabia and its people he has been made to believe all these years. "I came for the Haj with misconceptions about the Saudi people. I was fearful and apprehensive because I heard that they are racists and that they treat others badly," he said. Safi said he began changing his ideas about the Saudi people when he was welcomed with flowers, Zamzam water and warm hugs and smiles on arrival at the Madinah airport. "This immediately changed my perception. They (the Saudis) are generous and welcoming people. This is totally contrary to what I have been hearing from my Shiite clan," he said. Safi also said he used to hear that the Saudi security men were tough especially with the foreigners whom they maltreat and oppress. "I saw Saudi security personnel helping people, providing them water, guiding them politely to their destinations and sometimes carrying them on their backs to complete their Haj rites," he said. Safi said the nice treatment he received during his stay in the Kingdom for the Haj made him change his mind about the Saudi police. He has now become confident that the bad things he used to hear about the Saudi people from the Shiites in his country were not more than plots to seed dissensions among the various Islamic factions. He also accused the media in his country of circulating fabricated reports about the Kingdom and its people. "From now on, I will not listen to anything negative about the Kingdom or its people," he added. Safi, 65, said he was hesitant to come to Saudi Arabia and was held back by what he used to hear about the Saudis' racism and bad treatment of others. "The Saudi people gave both the Sunni and the Shiite Iraqi pilgrims the same nice treatment. Whenever you go in the streets of the Holy Sites, you will see Saudi men and women competing to serve you," he said. Safi said he will spread the truth about the Kingdom and its people to his fellow Shiites back home. "You only see cordiality and peace in the Saudi people and police. This will be my message to my people back home," the Shiite lawyer said.