Shafaqna English- A group of three Spanish Muslims traveling on horseback for Hajj has arrived in Turkey.
Their expedition, which is a sacred journey for Muslims, began with a vow made by one of the pilgrims after embracing Islam.
Traveling on horseback from Spain for the past 3.5 months, Abdallah Hernandez, Abdelkader Harkassi, and Tariq Rodriguez have reached Istanbul and will continue their journey to complete the Hajj pilgrimage while reviving a 500-year-old Andalusian Muslim tradition.
The group aims to reach Saudi Arabia via Syria after traveling through Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, and Türkiye on their 8,000-kilometer (4,970 miles) journey.
Hosted by Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University, the pilgrims met with students and supporters at the university as part of an event organized by the institution.
Speaking at the event, Prof. Huseyin Husnu Koyunoglu from the university’s Faculty of Islamic Sciences emphasized that Istanbul has been a significant stop for Hajj pilgrims for centuries.
Hernandez said he first learned about Islam at age 24. While working in geography, he studied the Bible and the Quran, finding the verses particularly striking.
He mentioned that before taking a geography exam, he promised himself that if he passed, he would become a Muslim.
The team said they wanted to spend the Month of Ramadhan in Istanbul and expressed a desire to visit important religious and historical sites, such as the Sultanahmet Mosque and the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque.
Source: IQNA