in Saudi Arabia, more than 1,000 deaths during the hajj in oppressive heat

INTERNATIONAL – Tragic outcome. More than 1,000 pilgrims died during the great Muslim pilgrimage which took place in Saudi Arabia under intense heat, according to a count carried out this Thursday, June 20 by AFP. More than half were illegal pilgrims.

A diplomat from an Arab country said Thursday that 58 additional deaths were recorded among Egyptian pilgrims, bringing the number of Egyptians who died during the hajj to 658. According to him, 630 of them did not have official authorization for the pilgrimage, in which around 1.8 million people participated this year.

In total, 1,081 deaths were reported by around ten countries. Through official channels or via diplomats involved in the search for victims. It must be said that the rituals took place, this year again, under very high temperatures, which reached 51.8 degrees Celsius at the Great Mosque of Mecca, the holiest city of Islam in the west of Saudi Arabia.

The hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and every Muslim who can afford it must do it at least once in their life at a time determined by the Muslim calendar, based on lunar cycles. Each year, tens of thousands of faithful attempt to participate in the pilgrimage without having the necessary permits, paid for and granted according to quotas, which give access in particular to air-conditioned facilities.

300,000 illegal pilgrims

At the beginning of June, Saudi Arabia announced that its security forces had turned back more than 300,000 unregistered pilgrims from Mecca, including 153,998 foreigners who entered the kingdom on tourist visas, without going through official channels. However, it seems that a large number of illegal pilgrims participated in the rituals which took place over several days starting on Friday, in particularly trying conditions.

“People were tired of being chased by security forces before the day of the (ritual at Mount) Arafat” SATURDAY, “ They were exhausted”, an Arab diplomat who requested anonymity told AFP on Thursday. He said heat was the main cause of death among Egyptian pilgrims, including complications from high blood pressure. In addition to Egypt, new deaths were confirmed on Thursday by Pakistan and Indonesia.

Deaths have also been confirmed by Malaysia, India, Jordan, Iran, Senegal, Tunisia, Sudan and the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, without their causes still being announced. And many people were still looking for news of missing pilgrims in hospitals or through social networks on Wednesday.

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