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Haj stampede: Death toll of Indians killed rises to 18

Authorities say at least 14 Indians and four Turks were killed in the hajj crush near a holy site in Saudi Arabia.

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However, Enver Gunenc, head of Hajj and Umrah Services General Directorate, corrected the death toll in the stampede as two Turkish pilgrims.

136 Iranian pilgrims have been pronounced dead so far, and more than a hundred others have been wounded.

Abdullah al-Sheikh, chairman of the Shura Council, an appointed body which advises the government, stressed that pilgrims must stick to “the rules and regulations taken by the security personnel”.

Last week, more than 1000 pilgrims were also evacuated from a hotel in Mecca after a fire broke out. Thursday’s stampede was the deadliest since 1990.

Sudan Tribune (English) newspaper said that the Sudanese authorities announced Friday that one of their citizens was among the victims of the stampede that occurred near the Muslim holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Arabia is facing growing criticism over the catastrophe, with critics questioning its ability to manage the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

Iran’s president, Hassan Rouhani, called on the United Nations to investigate the cause of the stampede disaster “and other similar incidents in this year’s Hajj”.

Saudi Arabia’s health minister blamed the tragedy on “undisciplined pilgrims” who hadn’t followed instructions.

The pilgrimage season this year has also been marked by the construction crane that fell September 11 on the Grand Mosque of Mecca and left 107 dead and 238 injured.

The Mufti, the country’s most senior cleric, told interior minister Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef: “You are not responsible for what happened”.

Ohadi was quoted on state television as saying that 344 Iranians are still missing in Mina.

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The kingdom’s regional rival Iran expressed outrage at the deaths of 131 of its nationals at the world’s largest annual gathering of people, and politicians in Tehran suggested Riyadh was incapable of managing the event.

Over 700 people die at Mecca due to a stampede