I appreciate Shabbir Alibhai clarifying the circumstances for burning sacrificial animals. Farjan, an expatriate taxi driver from Uttar Pradesh who was preparing to perform Hajj in Saudi Arabia, recently told me how easy it now is to arrange for the ritual slaughter of an animal to fulfill that part of the Hajj ceremonies. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Project for Utilization of Sacrificial Animals makes it possible for Muslims living in Saudi Arabia and performing Hajj to deposit 375 Saudi riyals (about $150) at certain banks in the kingdom to purchase a sheep. An animal will then be slaughtered on the day of the Feast of Sacrifice and the meat processed and distributed to poor people in Muslim communities in 27 different countries.
Regarding Mohamed Regal's comments about the portrayal of Islam in the Western media, it was interesting to see a photograph in the Arab News during this year's Hajj that was remarkably similar to the disturbing one published last year in the Globe and Mail1depicting Indonesian Muslims reaching through the fence for a piece of meat outside Jakarta's Istiqial Mosque during the Feast of Sacrifice. The main difference between the photographs was the context. The Globe and Mail photograph was published on its own, whereas the Arab News photograph appeared alongside a number of articles about the Hajj and several photographs of Muslims during the Eid Al-Adha holiday in different cities around the world.
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