Saudi Arabia / 19 dead and 17 missing during this year’s pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina

At least 14 Jordanian and five Iranian pilgrims have died in Saudi Arabia during the great annual pilgrimage, the hajj, which is developing in one of the hottest regions of the world where the thermometer reached 46 degrees Celsius yesterday, Saturday.

The annual hajj pilgrimage, one of the five pillars of Islam, began on Friday in Mecca, in western Saudi Arabia, with more than 1.8 million worshippers, most of whom have come from abroad. The hajj consists of by a series of rituals completed over four days.

Muslim pilgrims are facing tough conditions with a significant rise in temperature, which is putting their health at risk, the Health Ministry said, while the National Center for Meteorology (NCM) said temperatures would range between 45 and 48 degrees Celsius at the holy sites.

Muslim pilgrims ascend #MountArafat braving extreme heat.#hajj
Source: AFP pic.twitter.com/GRsMOxItNy

— Roya News English (@RoyaNewsEnglish) June 15, 2024

Saudi authorities have not released the number of cases of hyperthermia among pilgrims, but last year there were more than 10,000 cases.

“Fourteen Jordanian pilgrims have died and the fate of 17 others is missing during the hajj rituals,” the Jordanian Foreign Ministry said today, according to a statement carried by the official Petra news agency.

“The ministry is monitoring, together with the relevant Saudi authorities, the procedures for the burial of the pilgrims and the transfer of the bodies of those whose families wish to be transported to the kingdom,” he added, clarifying that searches are continuing to find the 17 missing pilgrims.

The head of the Iranian Red Crescent, Pirhossein Koulivant, said for his part that “five Iranian pilgrims lost their lives (…) in Mecca and Medina during this year’s hajj.” Details of the circumstances of the deaths of these pilgrims have not been released.