Authorities say more than 1,000 Muslims died during the recent Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia as the area suffered extreme temperatures.
A pair of Cairo officials explained that more than half of those who died were from Egypt, the Associated Press (AP) reported Sunday, adding that “Egypt revoked the licenses of 16 travel agencies that helped unauthorized pilgrims travel to Saudi Arabia, authorities said.”
Video footage shows what are reportedly bodies lying on the street in the city of Mina, per the Wall Street Journal. The outlet said temperatures recently reached over 125 degrees:
On Tuesday, Arab diplomats told AFP that many of the deaths during this year’s hajj to Mecca were due to “heat-related illnesses,” Breitbart News reported Wednesday.
More than 1,000 people died in this year’s hajj as temperatures in Saudi Arabia soared above 125 degrees. Americans and hundreds of Egyptians were among the dead https://t.co/K5nd97YoYk https://t.co/K5nd97YoYk
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) June 21, 2024
Saudi officials noted on June 16 that more than 2,000 pilgrims were treated for heat stress, but they did not speak about deaths.
The AP report continued:
Saudi authorities cracked down on unauthorized pilgrims, expelling tens of thousands of people. But many, mostly Egyptians, managed to reach holy sites in and around Mecca, some on foot. Unlike authorized pilgrims, they had no hotels to escape from the scorching heat.
In its statement, the government said the 16 travel agencies failed to provide adequate services for pilgrims. It said these agencies illegally facilitated the travel of pilgrims to Saudi Arabia using visas that don’t allow holders to travel to Mecca.
Saudi Arabia is also facing outrage for allegedly failing to provide proper safety protocol, water, and other services to those joining the pilgrimage to Mecca that ended on Tuesday, according to Breitbart News. The outlet noted the death toll in 2023 was estimated to be 230 people.
According to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in Washington, DC, the hajj is the “spiritual apex of a Muslim’s life” and shows that person has performed the fifth pillar of the Islamic faith.
Over 1,000 Muslim worshippers die of heat exhaustion during Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia: report https://t.co/JoP94J33xA
— Fox News (@FoxNews) June 21, 2024
The embassy also noted the pilgrims walk about eight miles to the Plain of Arafat for prayers. The area’s temperature hovers around 90 degrees and there are thousands of sprinklers set up for cooling purposes, along with refrigerated trucks that provide cold water.
“Despite these precautions, the wail of sirens is ever present as hundreds of ambulances pick up pilgrims suffering from heat exhaustion and transport them to special clinics for treatment. The more serious cases are evacuated by helicopter to hospitals,” the embassy said.
