International committee should probe Mina crush: Lecturer

Press TV has conducted an interview with Jamal Wakim, a professor at the Lebanese International University in Beirut, to discuss Saudi Arabia’s attempts at sabotaging the formation of an international fact-finding mission to probe last year’s stampede in Mina.

Press TV: Is calling for an international fact-finding committee over what happened in Mina last year politicizing the Hajj?

Wakim: I believe that this is the right of all nations that lost citizens in the stampede that happened last year in Mina and an international organization or committee should be investigating the issue in order to provide an objective report about what happened in order to determine who was responsible for this and in order to make sure that it wouldn’t get repeated.

I believe that from the Saudi point of view, taking into consideration the conflict with Iran and the conflict over influence in the region, I believe that the Saudis would consider such call as a politicized call and they will try whatever they can in order to stall this attempt to form such a committee.

Press TV: It’s not just about Iran over here in that stampede. There were people from different nationalities who were killed. Wouldn’t it be logical to set up some form of a commission that would look into what went wrong and ensuring that that isn’t repeated?

Wakim: Definitely, but the problem was that other governments didn’t protest against Saudi Arabia, they were acquiescent, the Saudis were able to strike a deal with a lot of Islamic countries and governments. It was only Iran that was calling for investigation and this makes Iran stand alone in this which would facilitate the attempt of Saudi Arabia to stall the formation of an international committee, because Iran should be joined by other nations who lost citizens and pilgrims in Mina last year in order to exert pressure on the Saudi government to accept such an international committee, but so far we don’t see this happening.

Press TV: What is Saudi Arabia so afraid of? What does it think that would be found by this fact-finding commission that it wants to cover up?

Wakim: I believe that there might be irresponsibility by the Saudi authorities and they are afraid that they would no longer have control, if such a committee is formed. This would endanger their full control over the Hajj which is also a very important source of income for the Saudi authorities; not to forget about the influence that Saudi Arabia enjoys being the host of the holy sites of the holy city of Mecca and Medina.

So, that’s why such a committee might call for an international organization or an international committee that takes over and supervises the pilgrimage season which might break the full monopoly that Saudis are enjoying since 8 decades so far.

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