Saudi Gazette Report
MAKKAH — Prince Saud bin Mishal, deputy emir of Makkah, made an inspection tour of several locations at the Holy Sites on Sunday to ensure their readiness to receive pilgrims during the current Hajj season. Director of Public Security Lt. Gen. Mohammed Al-Bassami and several other high-ranking officials accompanied the deputy emir during the tour.
Prince Saud started his visit by inspecting the readiness of the Mashair Train to transport pilgrims between the Holy Sites during this Hajj season. He reviewed the operations and control center's activities, its readiness to operate trains and stations, and the interactive screens containing information about trial operations and crowd management. This year’s Hajj plan aims to transport over two million passengers through more than 2,000 trips over seven days of actual operation.
Moreover, he listened to a briefing about the role of the Facilities Security Forces at Mashair Train stations and their efforts in organizing pedestrian movement and crowd management at the stations. These efforts aimed to prevent congestion and manage the density of people, with the movement of pedestrians also monitored through the control room to ensure the safety of pilgrims entering the stations.
He visited East Arafat Hospital and reviewed the workflow in several departments, including the emergency department, isolation rooms, clinics, intensive care units, operating rooms, and heat stroke treatment units. The hospital has a total capacity of 405 beds.
The deputy emir inspected the Arafat Camps Development Project, a two-story facility executed by the Company of Mutawifs for Pilgrims from African Non-Arab Countries under the supervision of Kidana Development Company, the main developer of the Holy Sites. The project aims to enrich the pilgrim service by providing all essential services needed for performing the rituals, making optimal use of space in the Holy Sites, enhancing service quality, and introducing new innovative services to increase pilgrim comfort and raise the capacity in the Holy Sites.
Furthermore, he reviewed the first phase of Muzdalifah’s pedestrian road path, which spans 70,000 square meters and can accommodate 60,000 pilgrims. The project includes 10,000 square meters of green spaces and features cooling of pedestrian walkways, climate moderation, humanization of the Al-Mashar Al-Haram Mosque area, visual improvement, eco-friendly products, and year-round sustainability. The project also includes pedestrian paths for the elderly and people with special needs, golf cart paths, service areas, and commercial kiosks.
The deputy emir then visited the mobile field hospital in Muzdalifah, operated by the Ministry of Defense, which contains 50 beds and provides necessary medical services to pilgrims. The hospital includes departments for inpatient care, isolation, heatstroke treatment, critical care, emergency, operating and recovery rooms, radiology, laboratory, and sterilization.
At the end of the tour, Prince Saud chaired a meeting attended by the Minister of Communications and Information Technology Eng. Abdullah Al-Swaha, Governor of the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) Mohammed Altamimi, and several leaders of the digital economy sector.
During the meeting, the deputy emir was briefed on the preparations of the system for this year's Hajj season, the growth indicators of the communications and technology sector, and the readiness of all plans and the robustness of networks in the Holy Sites, in coordination with public and private sector entities and the committees overseeing the Hajj season.
