On Monday, the Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Saudi Arabian authorities of “murder” for their management of last year’s pilgrimage when at least 2,236 people died.
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Iran is one of the countries that has no faith in Saudi Arabia’s ability to manage the yearly pilgrimage.
The latest round began with comments from Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who in full bluster condemned the Saudis for prohibiting Iranian pilgrims from joining the Hajj after talks about security and logistics collapsed.
For the first time in nearly three decades, Iranians will not participate in this year’s pilgrimage to Makkah after talks on logistics and security fell apart. The Saudis had placed the death toll at 769.
Saudi authorities normally seek to avoid public discussion of whether Shias are Muslims, but implicitly recognise them as such by welcoming them to the Hajj.
Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque in the Muslim holy city of Mecca.
Mina/Mumbai: The number of Hajj pilgrims coming from outside Saudi Arabia, since the beginning of pilgrims’ arrival until the end of Wednesday, accounted to 1,323,520 pilgrims, according to official statistics issued by Saudi Arabia’s General Directorate of Passports.
Relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia were already at rock bottom before the regional rivals started trading barbs this week ahead of the start of the annual Hajj pilgrimage on Saturday.
Jeddah, Sep. 8 (BNA): Iranian hajj pilgrims hailing from outside Iran including journalists, reporters and media men said the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has exerted maximum efforts in the provision of all means to serve all hajj pilgrims regardless of nationality or origin.
Iranian pilgrims are not taking part in this year’s hajj, a ritual required of all able-bodied Muslims at least once in their life.
Animosity between Sunnis – who make up an estimated 85-90% of Saudi Arabia’s population – and Shia – about 90-95% of Iran’s population – goes back to a 7th Century schism.
Saudi Arabia’s most senior cleric, Grand Mufti Abdulaziz al-Sheikh, also waded into the dispute, telling the Makkah daily on Tuesday: “We must understand these are not Muslims, they are children of Magi and their hostility towards Muslims is an old one”. It must fulfil this responsibility to the best of their abilities, politics has no place in the organisation of the largest religious pilgrimage of the world.
President Hassan Rouhani said on Wednesday that Iran will never give up on restoring the rights of the victims of the Mina tragedy, IRNA reported. The two countries also support opposing sides in the civil wars in Syria and Yemen.
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Saudi officials defended their running of the pilgrimage, with Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Nayef on September 5 saying the kingdom had always provided Iranian pilgrims with access to all facilities. Saudi authorities eventually executed 16 Kuwaiti Shi’a for the bombings after originally blaming Iranian terrorists.
