Wednesday June 19, 2024
Somali pilgrims arriving at the sacred city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia. Photo/ MERA
Mogadishu (HOL) — The extreme heat in Saudi Arabia during this year's Hajj has led to the deaths of 550 pilgrims, including six Somali nationals, according to the Ministry of Religion and Endowments of Somalia.
This year, 11,500 Somalis travelled to perform Hajj, said Mohamed Haji Ibrahim, Director of Somalia's Ministry of Religion and Endowments, in an interview with the BBC. Among the six Somali deaths, one was attributed to an accident. "Somali pilgrims are safe and well, but six have died. One of these deaths was due to an accident," confirmed Ibrahim.
The Saudi government has not released official death toll figures but reported over 2,700 cases of heat stroke. Over 550 deaths have been recorded, with nationalities including 323 Egyptians and 60 Jordanians, as reported by AFP. Other countries with reported fatalities include Indonesia, Iran, Senegal, Tunisia, and the Kurdistan region. An Asian diplomat informed AFP that about 68 Indian pilgrims have died, with others still missing.
Last year, more than 200 pilgrims died during Hajj, with most coming from Indonesia. According to Somalia's Minister of Religion and Endowments, Mukhtar Robow, at least four Somali pilgrims died, and at least 60 others fell ill due to the heat last year.
This year, 1,833,164 pilgrims from Islamic countries performed Hajj, with 221,854 of them being Saudi nationals. The remaining 1,611,310 pilgrims came from various countries, including Somalia. Among those performing Hajj this year, 958,137 are men, and 875,027 are women, according to the Saudi government. Additionally, 4,714 pilgrims arrived in Saudi Arabia by sea, 60,251 by land, and 1,546,435 by air.