MINA – Prince Khaled Al-Faisal, emir of Makkah and adviser to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and chairman of the Central Haj Committee, visited the scene of stampede in Mina. Some 717 pilgrims were killed and 863 injured in the stampede that took place at 9 a.m. during the symbolic stoning of the devil ritual. Maj. Gen. Mansour Al-Turki, security spokesman at the Ministry of Interior, said the causes for crowding that led to the deadly stampede on Mina Street 204 are yet to be ascertained. “There should be comprehensive field and scientific investigation to find out the causes. This could be because of the pilgrims' failure to abide by the grouping plan or because of any other reasons,” he said while addressing a press conference in Mina. Meanwhile, Minister of Haj Bandar Hajjar said that most of the pilgrims who were victims of stampede were those who did not abide by the regulations regarding the timing of their stoning ritual. “These pilgrims were supposed to return to their tents from Muzdalifah and had to perform the ritual later according to the time slot allotted to their nation. But they preferred to move directly to Jamarat to perform stoning,” he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. Hajjar said that the ministry has allotted separate time slot for pilgrims from each country as part of a full-fledged plan. “However, a large number of pilgrims did not comply with the instructions.” The Civil Defense said that it was still counting the dead, who included pilgrims from different countries. Official spokesman of the Directorate of Civil Defense said the stampede occurred on the intersection of street No. 204 and 223 as pilgrims crowded the Jamarat area for the stoning ritual. Street No. 204 is one of the two main arteries leading through the camp to Jamarat, where pilgrims ritually stone the devil by hurling pebbles. The Civil Defense and Saudi Red Crescent Authority personnel rushed to the stampede site. The seriously injured were airlifted to specialist hospitals in Makkah, those with minor injuries were taken to hospitals in Mina. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims had converged on Mina on Thursday to throw pebbles at one of three pillars representing Satan. A hospital official said the incident happened outside the Jamarat Bridge structure, where the stoning takes place. A group of pilgrims leaving the area collided with another group that was either moving in the opposite direction or camped outside. Helicopters were flying overhead and ambulances were rushing the injured to hospital. At one hospital, a steady stream of ambulances discharged pilgrims on stretchers. Efforts to improve safety at Jamarat have included enlarging the three pillars and constructing a three-decker bridge around them to increase the area and number of entry and exit points for pilgrims to perform the ritual. More than 100,000 police and thousands of video cameras are also deployed to allow groups to be dispersed before they reach dangerous levels of density. “Please pilgrims do not push one another. Please leave from the exit and don't come back by the same route,” an officer kept repeating through a loudspeaker at Jamarat. Official figures released Thursday said 1,952,817 pilgrims had performed this year's Haj, including almost 1.4 million foreigners. Earlier Thursday, pilgrims arrived in Mina from Muzdalifah, where they gather pebbles to stone the Jamarat. Their symbolic stoning of the devil on Thursday coincides with the Eid Al-Adha feast of sacrifice marked by the world's more than 1.5 billion Muslims. Police sirens pierced the air and helicopters hovered overhead as the faithful arrived on Wednesday from Arafat to nearby Muzdalifah, where water sprays cooled them. They placed prayer rugs and mats on the ground where they slept until dawn. Many laid down to rest but others savored tea and refreshments offered by fellow pilgrims. Most were busy choosing the pebbles they planned to use for the next day's stoning, storing them in empty water bottles. “We are implementing the Prophet's Sunnah (tradition)” by gathering stones, said Mezian Abdelkarim, 60, of Algeria. “We pick up a total of 49 pebbles to stone the devil,” said Bangladeshi pilgrim Shafiq Al-Alim, who is performing the pilgrimage for his dead grandmother. — With inputs from agencies
