528 Couples Marry in Mass Weddings

HOFUF, 20 June 2004 — Five hundred and twenty-eight couples tied the knot in six separate mass weddings in Ahsa province in celebrations drawing 25,000 guests, Al-Watan reported.

Of the couples, 160 got married in Al-Shuba village, 160 in Al-Butaliya, 118 in Al-Hulaileya, 32 in Al-Matrafi, 30 in Al-Jarn and 28 Al-Kurain.

Organizers said the aim of such mass weddings was chiefly to reduce the crippling wedding expenses which too often make it virtually impossible for young people to get married. In the mass weddings, each groom only paid SR6,000, and any money left over after the festivities would be returned to them, the organizers added.