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Palestinian Muslims planning to go on pilgrimage to Mecca hold pictures of Palestinian Hamas leader Ismail Haniya and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak (C) during a protest at the Rafah border point to demand the opening of the crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt to be able to travel to Saudi Arabia. Muslim pilgrims from all over the world have begun their preparations to head to Mecca to take part in the annual Hajj pilgrimage early next month. The Rafah crossing, the only one in Gaza that bypasses Israel, has been generally closed since June 2006 when Palestinian militants captured an Israeli soldier.