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Ribuan umat muslim melakukan Tawaf di Masjidil Haram (ANTARA/Saptono)
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VIVAnews - The Saudi Arabian government has stepped up security in the city of Mecca ahead of hajj pilgrimage which will be followed by millions of people from around the world. Those who violate the security, the Saudi government will impose fines worth thousands of dollars.
Al-Arabiya reported, Monday, October 15, 2012, Saudi will lose more of the security forces at the entrance to Mecca. It is intended to prevent illegal activity and immigrants are undesirable.
"There are nine gates to Mecca. The guards at the gates will examine every visitor, whether residents or visitors in the Kingdom, to ensure that they have permission to Hajj," said the head of a passport Mecca at the Immigration Department, Brigadier Ayid al-Lukmani .
Not say how many troops were deployed to secure the pilgrims. However, Lukmani say that is quite large. "The main forces alone account for many, not to mention the additional troops," he said.
The immigration department has also provided buses to transport pilgrims to Mecca and locations other pilgrimage destination. To prevent illegal pilgrims, the Saudi government will impose sanctions for those who do not have a license, which is about 10,000 Saudi riyals, or about Rp25, 6 million.
To support the investigation, officials in Saudi have a special tool that is able to detect false immigration documents. "This tool is unique, can detect false passports or visas," said Lukmani.
Each year, visitors flooded the city of Mecca in the month of Hajj. Last year, about 2.5 million people from around the world came to Mecca. To quote the BBC, last year Saudi security forces lose 63,000 troops and 22,000 civilians.
