Arriving in the late evening into Mecca was not plain sailing. Though I am part of a large media outfit, even being with Al Jazeera holds little sway with the police when they see you wearing the two-piece white sheets – ihram.
It’s a complicated catch-22 situation. To arrive in Mecca, in fact in Saudi during the Hajj month you have to state your intention religiously, so you wear your ihram as you fly into Jeddah.
However, we were not performing the Hajj as we’re guests of the Ministry of Information covering Hajj for the channel, so theoretically one might say you shouldn’t wear the ihram.
The problem arises when the police who patrol the toll plaza as you enter the city see who you are and what you’re wearing.
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