Arab News wraps up its coverage of Haj preparations with this piece. The article gives the schedule for the different phases of the pilgrimage and notes the physical developments of the area intended to make Haj easier and safer.

‘Here I am, oh Allah … here I am …’

The changes that have taken place around Mina and the Jamrat area in the past few years are astounding. Anyone who performed Haj 30 years ago or more can remember how calm and serene it was. The increase in the number of pilgrims in the intervening period changed everything. The area turned into one of the most congested parts of the pilgrimage, with the most accidents and the most deaths. Not so now.

In this, the last installment of the Arab News Countdown to Haj, we focus on how the holy sites have been redeveloped with safety wholly in mind. Points of entry into Mina are now controlled. No longer can private cars and taxis drive there; only registered buses have access. The massive five-level complex surrounding the Jamrat area for the stoning has been organized so that pedestrians can keep moving slowly but securely in a one-way system. At no point today will there be congestion or dangers. The development of the facilities — others include the provision of emergency medical services and volunteer guides to help pilgrims — is a remarkable improvement.
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The paper also reports a 70% drop in local pilgrims. This is due, the article says, to local concerns about swine flu, but also to the fact that residents of Mecca and Medina often leave town to avoid the masses of pilgrims.