In a tragic turn of events, 68 Indian nationals have died during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage, a Saudi Arabian diplomat reported on Wednesday. The pilgrimage has been marked by extreme heat, bringing the total number of deaths to over 600.
“We have confirmed around 68 dead… Some are because of natural causes and we had many old-age pilgrims. And some are due to the weather conditions, that’s what we assume,” the diplomat, who requested anonymity, told AFP.
This new toll follows reports from two Arab diplomats on Tuesday that 550 fatalities had been recorded. These figures included 323 Egyptians and 60 Jordanians, with nearly all the Egyptians reportedly succumbing to heat-related causes.
In addition to Egypt and Jordan, fatalities have also been confirmed by officials from Indonesia, Iran, Senegal, Tunisia, and Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region. However, in many cases, authorities have not specified the exact causes of death.
According to an AFP tally, the total number of reported deaths now stands at 645. Last year, more than 200 pilgrims died, most of whom were from Indonesia.
Saudi Arabia has yet to provide official information on the fatalities. Nonetheless, it reported over 2,700 cases of “heat exhaustion” on Sunday alone. The Indian diplomat also mentioned that some Indian pilgrims are still missing but declined to give an exact number.
“This happens every year… We can’t say that it is abnormally high this year,” he said. “It’s somewhat similar to last year but we will know more in the coming days.”
For several years now, the Hajj pilgrimage has occurred during Saudi Arabia’s sweltering summer months. A recent Saudi study revealed that temperatures in the area where the Hajj rituals are performed are rising by 0.4 degrees Celsius (0.72 degrees Fahrenheit) each decade.
The Hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, is a religious duty that every Muslim with the means must undertake at least once in their lifetime. This year’s event has once again underscored the challenges and risks posed by extreme weather conditions during the pilgrimage.
