A stampede previous year killed at least 2000, by all estimates except that of the Saudi government.
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Relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia were already at rock bottom before the regional rivals started trading caustic remarks ahead of the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Islam’s holiest places in Saudi Arabia, which is due to start on Saturday. However, it doesn’t mean that there has been no more incidents; as in different years, many people have fallen casualty in dozens and hundreds to misconduct of organizers in stampedes, fire incidents, construction failures, etc. Iran had by then learned how to organize its own pilgrims in the best possible manner to avoid such incidents.
The official IRNA news agency quotes Rouhani Wednesday as saying the pilgrims lost their lives because of the “lack of qualification” of Saudi authorities.
In 2015, more than 2 million pilgrims flocked to Mecca, the birthplace of the prophet Mohammed.
Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to the holy city of Makkah that Muslims are expected to make at least once in their lifetime.
At least 2,297 pilgrims were killed in the crush, according to figures from foreign officials in more than 30 countries.
Last year’s stampede was one of the worst in recorded history, claimed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a message published on Monday.
Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, Imam Sayyed Ali Khamenei said the “accursed tree” of Saudi Arabia rulers, Al Saud, did not deserve to manage holy sites in the Gulf Kingdom.
“The government of Saudi Arabia must be held accountable for this incident”, he said.
Saudi Arabia says that Iranian pilgrims are still welcome if they come from other countries.
Is calling for an worldwide fact-finding committee over what happened in Mina previous year politicizing the Hajj?
He said the Iranian authorities were not interested in whether their own pilgrims attended Hajj or not.
“Saudi Arabia enjoys a special status in the hearts of all Arabs and Muslims, and the initiatives of its wise leadership in championing Arab and Islamic causes are innumerable”, he said while receiving the Saudi Ambassador to Bahrain, Dr. Abdullah bin Abdul Malek Al Al-Sheikh, at the Gudaibiya Pace today.
Despite weeks of talks on planning for this year’s event, Iranian and Saudi officials failed to find agreement.
Saudi Arabia is expecting a more subdued Hajj and ensuing Eid celebration this year: the global slump in oil prices has led to government spending cuts and a drop in consumer spending, leaving citizens facing their most austere Eid in more than a decade.
It’s not unusual for Saudi Arabia and Iran to spit vitriol at each other.
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The pilgrims crowded into Mecca’s sprawling, air-conditioned Grand Mosque to walk around the Kaaba – which Muslims across the globe face while they pray.
