Islamic Countries Should Force Riyadh to Accept Responsibility for Mina Crush: Analyst
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A senior Lebanese analyst censured the Saudi regime for its failure to ensure security of Hajj pilgrims, saying that Muslim countries should compel Riyadh to admit responsibility for a recent crush near Mecca, which killed hundreds of people.
“This is not the first time that such incidents occur during the rites of Hajj,” Talal Atrissi, a Lebanese sociologist and university professor, told the Tasnim News Agency, referring to the deaths of hundreds of Hajj pilgrims, including over 130 Iranian nationals, in a crush in Mina, Saudi Arabia.
He went on to say that such tragic incidents happen because of the Saudis’ improper performance and mismanagement of Hajj rituals.
“Muslim countries should not allow Saudi Arabia to abdicate its responsibility,” Atrissi said, adding that the countries should “force Riyadh to accept responsibility for bitter incidents like that in Mina”.
Nearly 2000 pilgrims were killed in a Thursday crush in Mina when performing religious rites. With the death toll rising, many pilgrims are still unaccounted for in the incident that marked the worst Hajj disaster in 25 years.
So far, 136 Iranian pilgrims have been pronounced dead and more than a hundred others have been wounded in the tragic event.
The accident came nearly two weeks after tens of Hajj pilgrims were killed in another tragic incident in Mecca.
On September 11, a massive construction crane crashed into Mecca’s Grand Mosque in stormy weather, killing at least 107 people, including 11 Iranians, and injuring 201 others.
Hajj, the world’s largest annual gathering of people, has already witnessed numerous deadly crushes, fires and riots in the past.
Saudi authorities have come under fire for their inability to ensure the safety of hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who converge on Mecca every year.