Throughout this yr’s Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, greater than a thousand folks died within the excessive warmth. Unofficially registered pilgrims who took half within the rituals accounted for greater than half of the deaths. In response to an Arab diplomat, 658 of the useless had been from Egypt, 630 of them weren’t formally registered.
Ten international locations have to date reported a complete of 1,081 deaths through the Hajj. The figures come from official statements or from diplomats of the respective international locations.
Within the run-up to the Hajj, the Saudi Arabian authorities stated that they had expelled a whole lot of hundreds of unregistered pilgrims from Mecca – lots of whom apparently nonetheless took half within the Hajj, which started per week in the past on Friday. These unregistered pilgrims had been significantly uncovered to the intense warmth. With out a license, they weren’t allowed entry to cooled rooms that the authorities had arrange for the 1.8 million authorised pilgrims to get better from the usually hours-long walks and prayers within the open air.
“Folks had been drained following being chased away by safety forces forward of Arafat Day. They had been exhausted,” stated an Arab diplomat, referring to final Saturday, when believers climbed Mount Arafat in scorching warmth to hope for a lot of hours.
Egypt despatched reconnaissance groups to Mecca to assemble data on lacking Egyptian residents and, amongst different issues, to go to hospitals to search for our bodies or Egyptians receiving remedy.
The Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca is among the 5 pillars of Islam. It needs to be undertaken a minimum of as soon as in a lifetime by each wholesome Muslim who can afford it. For monetary causes, many believers participate within the Hajj with out the official pilgrimage license and are due to this fact not registered by the Saudi Arabian authorities.
The interval of the pilgrimage is set by the Islamic calendar and lately has repeatedly coincided with durations of warmth. This yr temperatures of as much as 51.8 levels had been recorded. Most of the rituals are carried out outdoor and on foot, which is a problem particularly for older folks.
