Egypt has withdrawn the operating licenses of 16 tourism companies and referred them to the attorney general, accusing them of being responsible for the deaths of Egyptian pilgrims in Mecca, a crisis cell charged with tackling to the situation.
Medical and security sources say at least 530 Egyptians have died during the haj pilgrimage to Mecca this year. The statement from the cell, created Thursday and led by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, said 31 deaths were confirmed as a result of chronic illness.
The tourism companies that facilitated the travel of the deceased did not provide them with any services, including medical, the statement said without naming the companies concerned.
These agencies are accused of sending pilgrims to Saudi Arabia on personal visit visas, rather than on haj visas which allow access to Mecca where the haj rituals take place.
Medical services offered by the Saudi authorities to alleviate the difficulties of the pilgrimage are not offered to those traveling on a personal visa. The deceased pilgrims had to walk through the desert to Mecca to avoid arrest or deportation, the statement added.
Egyptian authorities also claim that travel agencies failed to provide pilgrims with “suitable accommodation”, adding that this caused “exhaustion of pilgrims due to high temperatures”.
Egyptian authorities also reported 31 deaths among registered Egyptian pilgrims, citing “chronic illnesses” as the cause of the deaths.
Most of the deceased were not registered, the statement said.
In recent days, hundreds of people from different countries have died in harrowing conditions on the haj pilgrimage in the Saudi city, where temperatures have sometimes exceeded 51 degrees Celsius (124 Fahrenheit).
