Iranian Hajj Pilgrims in Good Health
Pirhossein Kulivand, the deputy of the Iranian Red Crescent Society’s (IRCS) Hajj and Pilgrimage Medical Center, said there have been no incidents for Hajj pilgrims from Iran either in Mecca or Medina.
He made the remarks in reaction to reports that over 30 Hajj pilgrims from different countries have lost their lives in Saudi Arabia in the past few days.
Thank God, all of the pilgrims from Iran are in good health and performing the rituals in the holy places, he added.
Kulivand also said that 75 percent of Iranian medical staff slated to provide medical and health services to Iranian pilgrims have arrived in Saudi Arabia so far and the rest will travel to the Arab country in the coming days.
On Monday, Saudi Arabia’s General Directorate of Passports at the Ministry of Interior said 31 foreign nationals entering the kingdom for Hajj have died.
It did not mention the cause of the deaths but most deaths during the Hajj season happen due to old age.
It added that more than 623,000 foreign nationals have arrived in Saudi Arabia for the annual pilgrimage, al-Bawaba news reported.
According to Saudi officials, the total number of Hajj pilgrims will be less than two million this year.
There will be 1.3 million pilgrims from different countries as well as 567,000 Saudi pilgrims taking part in the ritual.
Hajj is an annual pilgrimage that every able-bodied and financially able Muslim is obliged to undertake during their lifetime.
Some 85,000 Iranian pilgrims will take part in Hajj this year.
Iran announced in mid-March that applicants can go on Hajj pilgrimage this year following negotiations with Saudi officials after a hiatus in the wake of a diplomatic row with the kingdom.
In 2016, more than 1.8 million pilgrims attended Hajj, but Iranians stayed at home after tensions between Riyadh and Tehran boiled over following a deadly crush of people during the 2015 pilgrimage.
On September 24, 2015, thousands of people lost their lives in the deadly crush after Saudi authorities blocked a road in Mina during a ritual, forcing large crowds of pilgrims to collide.
The crush was the deadliest incident in the history of the pilgrimage. According to an Associated Press count based on official statements from the 36 countries that lost citizens in the disaster, more than 2,400 pilgrims were killed in the incidents.
Two weeks earlier, on September 11, 2015, a huge construction crane collapsed into Mecca’s Grand Mosque, killing more than 100 pilgrims, including several Iranians, and injuring over 200 others in the lead-up to the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
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