Muslim pilgrims to Mecca are a hit on social media with 'hajj selfies'

The Twittersphere and social media is abuzz in the Arab-Muslim world, this time over what conservative clerics say is a controversial practice of hajj pilgrims to Mecca taking “selfies” with their smartphone devices.

Thousands of Muslims who traveled to Saudi Arabia for the pilgrimage to Mecca - which is a religious commandment for all followers of Islam - posted photographs of themselves near the holy sites in Mecca as well as other historic areas on the journey, prompting an angry response from clerics who say the practice is illegitimate.

The trend has become so popular that the hashtag #Hajjselfie has garnered thousands of tweets.

Can #Hajjselfie beat the #OscarSelfie in Retweets ? Lets RT this To infinity #Muslim and say #mashAllah pic.twitter.com/WQANJ5m8Hh
— Somalia Pundit (@SomPundit) April 30, 2014

The French news agency AFP quoted a professor of Sharia law based in Riyadh as saying that "if photographs are only for personal memory and not for disseminating, then no problem. But if they were for the purpose of showing off, then they are prohibited, such as the photography that takes place at the (hajj) rites."

Morality battles over #hajjselfie aside, this guy is winning. #NotInMyName Via @iimandesu #الحج_1435 pic.twitter.com/yThF5TWRCU
— Erin Kilbride (@neo_chlo) October 2, 2014