bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Reuters

Hundreds of visitors have died during the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca amid scorching heat, according to press reports and foreign ministries.
At least 550 people have died on haj, diplomats told Agence France-Presse on Tuesday. Three hundred and twenty-three of the dead were Egyptians, most of whom perished due to heat-related illness, AFP reported, citing two Arab diplomats.
Stampedes, tent fires and other accidents have caused hundreds of deaths during haj to Saudi Arabia in the past 30 years. The pilgrimage began on Friday.
Saudi state TV said temperatures rose on Monday as high as 51.8 degrees Celsius (125.2 Fahrenheit) in the shade at the Grand Mosque in Mecca.

A 2024 study by the Journal of Travel and Medicine found that rising global temperatures may outpace strategies to deal with the heat.
A 2019 study by Geophysical Research Letters said that as temperatures rise in arid Saudi Arabia due to climate change, pilgrims performing haj will face “extreme danger”.
Thirty-five Tunisian citizens have died during the haj, Tunisian news agency Tunis Afrique Presse said on Tuesday.
Many of those deaths were due to extreme heat, family members said on social media, as other families continued to search for missing relatives in Saudi hospitals.
The Jordanian foreign ministry said it had issued 41 burial permits for Jordanian pilgrims on Tuesday. Earlier, the ministry said at least six Jordanian citizens died of heatstroke during the haj.
Eleven Iranians have died and 24 were hospitalised during the pilgrimage, Iranian state news outlet IRINN said on Tuesday without giving the causes of death.
Three Senegalese citizens also died during haj, Agence de Presse Sénégalaise, said on Monday.
One hundred and forty-four Indonesian citizens died during the pilgrimage, Indonesian health ministry data showed on Tuesday. The data did not specify if any of the deaths were due to heatstroke.

The haj is an annual pilgrimage that millions of Muslims make to Mecca to perform religious rites as taught by the Prophet Mohammad to his followers 14 centuries ago.
A Saudi health official, speaking to Reuters on Monday, before many of the reports of deaths were issued, said that authorities had not noticed any unusual fatalities among Muslim pilgrims amid the extremely high temperatures.
The ministry had so far treated more than 2,700 pilgrims who suffered from heat-related illness, he added.
“Haj is a difficult task, so you have to exert efforts and perform the rituals even in the conditions of heat and crowding,” an Egyptian pilgrim told Reuters on Sunday.
Pilgrims used umbrellas to protect themselves from the sun, as Saudi authorities warned pilgrims to stay hydrated and avoid being outdoors during the hottest hours between 11am and 3pm.
Haj, one of the largest mass gatherings in the world, is a once-in-a-lifetime duty for able-bodied Muslims who can afford it. It will end on Wednesday.
More than 1.8 million pilgrims were expected to take part this year, according to the Saudi General Authority for Statistics.


China and Russia agree to deepen cooperation on Arctic shipping route

Ex-UK soldier found guilty of spying for Iran

Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah trade accusations of ceasefire violations

Can Trump and Europe steer Iran towards a ‘grand bargain’ Middle East deal?

Middle East

Hundreds die on haj pilgrimage amid extreme heat in Saudi Arabia: reports

Muslim pilgrims use umbrellas to shield themselves from the sun. Photo: AP

 Mecca’s Grand Mosque on Monday. Photo: AFP

The burning sun and suffocating hot weather has been relentless. Photo: AFP

At least 14 die in extreme heat during haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia

Muslim pilgrims arrive to perform the symbolic ‘stoning of the devil’ ritual on Sunday. Photo: AFP

Muslim pilgrims in Mina, Saudi Arabia. Photo: Reuters

Israel-Gaza war hangs over haj as pilgrims flock to Mecca, amid ‘anger in broader Muslim world’

Muslim pilgrims circumambulate the Kaaba, the cubic building at the Grand Mosque, during the annual haj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. Photo: AP

A group of pilgrims share umbrellas to protect themselves from the heat as they leave after offer prayers outside at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Photo: AP

Qatar Airways passengers ‘pass out’ on runway in Athens after Boeing plane’s cooling fails

A Boeing 787 (Dreamliner) of Qatar Airways at a gate at the Berlin Airport.  A Qatar Airways flight was delayed in Athens due to a technical issue in intense heat. Photo: dpa

News

World

Deaths underscore the gruelling nature of the religious pilgrimage, which again unfolded in scorching temperatures this year


Deaths underscore the gruelling nature of the religious pilgrimage, which again unfolded in scorching temperatures this year.
