A Palestinian man waits with thousands of others for their turn to cross the Allenby Bridge February 23 as they begin their pilgrimage to the Islamic holy sites of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. One of the five tenets of Islam requires the Haj (pilgrimage to Mecca) at least once in their lifetime, according to the Islamic calender March is the season of the Haj for the year 2000.

EH/WS