Source: CNN
Authors: Dan Gilgoff andDan Merica
The annual pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, is the world’s largest gathering of Muslims – the biggest annual gathering of humanity, period.
So it’s no surprise that Middle East experts expect this year’s pilgrimage, the first to happen since the Arab Spring began last year, to be different.
The pilgrimage, called the Hajj, happens in the same global neighborhood as countries that have been roiled by protests, revolutions and war over the last 11 months.
But there’s uncertainty about exactly how this Hajj, which officially begins Friday, will be different.
Some experts are watching for potential flare-ups in Saudi Arabia, a country governed by an unelected royal family and where freedoms are limited. They note that ordinary Saudis will be rubbing shoulders with Arabs making pilgrimages from countries that have staged anti-government demonstrations and have unseated long-entrenched regimes.
Categories: Middle East