NEW KAABA CLOTH HANDED TO ELDEST GUARDIAN

By Ahmad Kamil Tahir

MECCA, Nov 19 (Bernama) -- The new kiswa (black cloth which covers the
Kaaba)was presented to its eldest guardian at a special ceremony on Wednesday
evening, Saudi Arabian English daily Arab News reported today.

The US$4.5 million pure silk weighs 670kg, and 150kg of gold and silver has
been used to engrave Qur'anic verses on the cloth.

Its size measures 658 square metres and comprises 47 pieces, each 14 metres
long and 95cm wide, the newspaper reported.

The report said, Chairman of the Presidency of the Affairs of the Two Holy
Mosques Sheikh Saleh ibn Abdul Rahman Al-Hussain handed over the garment to
Sheikh Abdul Aziz ibn Abdullah Al-Shaibi at the kiswa factory in Mecca.

The kiswa factory was built in Mecca, 74 years ago, by King Abdul Aziz and
since then, the cloth has been made every year by Saudis working in the factory.

According to the report, a small bag made of green velvet with gold and
silver engravings containing the key to the Kaaba, was also given to Sheikh
Abdul Aziz.

The Al-Shaibis have been custodians of the dressing and cleaning of the
Kaaba since Prophet Muhammad gave them its key. Any member of the family is,
therefore, authorised to open the door to the Kaaba.

Sheikh Abdul Aziz said that on Zulhijjah 8 (Nov 25), when pilgrims descended
on Mina, the old cloth would be pulled down.

In another development, the newspaper reported a sharp decline in the number
of Saudi and non-Saudi domestic pilgrims this year, quoting Saad Al-Qurashi,
head of the Haj and Umrah Commission at the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and
Industry, as saying.

"There will be 70 per cent fewer domestic pilgrims this year, as compared to
last year.

"As of today, about 68,000 Haj permits have been issued to domestic
pilgrims. That number includes expatriates and people who come from neighbouring

countries," he added.

Al-Qurashi said that 1.7 million Haj visas had been issued to foreign
pilgrims.
-- BERNAMA