Middle East leaders call for prayers for rain

While the Philippines is still reeling from the effects of the deadly tropical storm "Sendong" (international name: Washi), some areas in the Middle East are experiencing a drought, pushing leaders in the region to call for prayers for rain. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the President, His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, urged that prayers for rain (Salaat Al Istisqaa) be performed across all the country's mosques and musallahs at 8:00 a.m. on Friday.

A report of "Emirates 24/7" said the president urged Muslims to ask to God to bless the land with rain, based on the "Prophet Mohammad's (Peace Be Upon Him) tradition to seek showers from Allah in times of need." Meanwhile, according to a report of Arab News, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah "has called on worshippers in the Kingdom to perform rain-seeking prayers in all parts of the country on December 26." A royal court statement  on Friday said it was was the custom of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to pray for rain during times of drought. The report added that "annual rainfall is extremely low in the Kingdom except in the Asir province which is influenced by the Indian Ocean monsoons." Over 1,000 killed in PHL Meanwhile, in the Philippines, the death toll from tropical storm "Sendong" jumped to 1,453 as of Tuesday morning as more bodies were retrieved, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said. The NDRRMC added "Sendong" has so far affected 113,336 families (or 719,485 people) in 789 villages in 13 provinces. Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities were among the hardest hit areas.