Muslim pilgrims stoned the Jamraat (three stone pillars symbolically representing the devil's temptation) Wednesday for a second day in the tent city of Mina just outside Mecca, a day after 14 worshippers were trampled to death during a ritual fraught with danger because of overcrowding. Chanting "Allahu Akbar," or "God is Great," pilgrims threw seven small pebbles at each of three gray stone pillars in the last ritual of the five-day hajj, or annual pilgrimage. The ritual, which symbolizes the rejection of earthly temptations, will be repeated Thursday as the hajj winds down.

"I am very scared because of the huge crowd," said a 43-year old Egyptian pilgrim, Abdel-Qader Hussein. "I have two kids with me, so I will try to go as late as possible when there are less people."

Watched by guards and policemen, pilgrims are directed to approach the stoning site in orderly waves to avoid disasters like Tuesday's that left 14 people dead and 15 others with minor injuries.

The deaths took place when a group of pilgrims finished the ritual and was leaving as another wave entered, swelling the crowd dangerously on a market street. Three Indians, four Pakistanis, two Egyptians, an Iranian, a Yemeni and a Sudanese were killed. Two others had not yet been identified.

Following Tuesday's disaster, Saudi authorities said they had strengthened emergency services. Eight medical units were set up around the pillars to deal with any stampedes.

"We have increased the level of coordination among all concerned authorities to avoid what happened (Tuesday)," said Othman al-Maymani, Mecca's province health affairs director.

Al-Maymani said ambulances could not reach the site of the stampede quickly because of traffic jams caused by the nearly 2 million pilgrims converging in Mina, which comes alive only once a year during the hajj.

"We were all focusing on the area where the three stone pillars are and did not pay much attention to areas nearby in which the incident took place," al-Maymani told The Associated Press. But some pilgrims remained skeptical that keeping order was possible in such a large crowd.

"From my experience, it is hard to have full control over the stoning site. Many pilgrims could be mistakenly hit by stones," said Sudanese pilgrim Abdel-Hadi Mohammed, 45, who is performing the hajj for the fifth time. "I am afraid to die, but this is a ritual that has to be performed," he said.

All around, hundreds of security personnel controlled traffic and warned pilgrims not to sit or sleep in the streets.
In the past, the Mina ritual has been the source of dangerous bottlenecks.

In 2001, 35 people died in a stampede there. In 1998, 180 died performing the same ritual. A year earlier, more than 340 people died in a fire that ripped through pilgrims' tents in Mina.

Able-bodied Muslims are required to perform the hajj at least once if they can afford it. The rituals that began in the nearby holy city of Mecca - birthplace of Islam and its Prophet, Muhammad - comprise a spiritual journey that cleanses the soul and wipes away sins.

Pilgrims are expected to pay a farewell visit to the Grand Mosque in Mecca before leaving. Some also will take time to visit Prophet Muhammad's Mosque in Medina.

PHOTO CAPTION

Muslims perform the ritual 'Stoning of Jamraat" on the second day of this ritual in the town of Mina, near the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2003 . Thousands of Muslim pilgrims threw pebbles at three stone pillars chanting Allahu Akbar, carrying out a cleansing ritual. (AP Photo/Amel Emri