CAIRO: Three Spanish pilgrims performing the Hajj in Saudi Arabia rode on horseback to Makkah, traveling thousands of kilometers in snow and rain and along a path they said had not been trekked for more than 500 years.
Abdelkader Harkassi Aidi, Tarek Rodriguez and Abdallah Rafael Hernandez Mancha set out from southern Spain in October, riding through France, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkiye, Syria and Jordan to arrive in Saudi Arabia in May.
It was an emotional moment for the trio when they reached Makkah. No pilgrim had traveled this way since 1491, they said.
Pilgrims, including three from Spain, ride their horses through the Souq al-Hamidiyah market during their months-long horseback journey from Spain to Saudi Arabia to perform the Hajj, in Damascus, Syria, April 21, 2025. (AP)
Harkassi said the group’s path from Spain took them across about 8,000 kilometers (nearly 5,000 miles) before they reached the Kaaba, the black cube structure in the Grand Mosque in Makkah.
