Egypt’s Mina crush death toll rises to 138
The number of the Egyptian pilgrims who lost their lives in the deadly crush during this year’s Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia has risen to 138, Press TV reports.
Egypt’s Minister of Religious Endowments Mokhtar Gomaa said during a press conference on Sunday that 96 Egyptian pilgrims are also still missing.
The Egyptian minister added that 17 others are also still receiving treatment after being injured in the crush in Mina, near the holy city of Mecca, on September 24.
Meanwhile, Indonesia has raised its death toll from the incident to 100 after confirming nine more deaths. Indonesian officials say 28 people remain missing and six others are currently receiving treatment in Saudi hospitals.
India has also reported that 58 of its nationals have been confirmed dead so far and 78 others remain missing.
This as the latest figures from Pakistan show that 57 people have died, 47 been injured, and 102 gone missing.
Credible inquiry urged
Meanwhile, the chief minister of the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, requested a credible inquiry into the incident and to establish the exact number of pilgrims killed in the stampede.
“There should be no blame game. There should be an inquiry because lives of millions of people are at stake. I request, on the behalf of this House and as a concerned person who is associated with it, for a credible inquiry,” the chief Minister said in the state Assembly.
This comes on the same day that Iran, which has the highest number of deaths in the crush, held a funeral for victims after their bodies were sent back to their homeland. Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization says 4,700 people, including 464 Iranians, also lost their lives in Mina.
The rise in the number of the deaths confirmed by different countries comes as Saudi Arabia has refused to update its initial death toll of 769.
The crush occurred after two large masses of Hajj pilgrims fused together in Mina.
Some two million people were participating in Hajj rituals when the incident took place.
Saudi Arabia has also failed to take responsibility for its role in the tragedy and has not yet apologized to the countries that lost nationals in the incident.
Riyadh has come under pressure by many who say mismanagement by Saudi authorities resulted in the high number of casualties.
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