By Prensa Latina,
Riyadh : Some 100,000 Saudi troops are patrolling the Islamic Holy City Mecca, to provide security to over three million Muslims at the Hajj or annual pilgrimage beginning Saturday.
Interior Minister Prince Nayef bin Abdul-Aziz said pilgrims from all over the world would flood every sacred place every Muslim must visit at least one in his lifetime.
The crowd virtually paralyzes the Islamic world as prelude to four days of Eid Al-Adha, main feast of the Muslim calendar 70 after Ramadan.
Security will control traffic, prevent fires, frictions or a lethal stampede, although there is no hint of violence or terrorist attacks on sacred places around Mecca and Medina.
Still, official sources remind that the pilgrimage occurs less than two weeks past the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, with its toll of 171 deaths and over 300 wounded people, for which India blames to Pakistani Islamic militants.