“In [the] Kurdistan [Region], around 30 people lost their lives, unfortunately,” Pshtiwan Sadiq, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) minister of endowment and religious affairs said during a press conference on Monday after welcoming back the first batch of returning pilgrims at the Erbil International Airport.
According to Sadiq, 29 people who died during the pilgrimage went to Saudi Arabia outside official procedures and on one-year visas.
“In Kurdistan, 4,685 individuals performed the Hajj process officially through the endowment ministry, and that was the Kurdistan Region’s share from Iraq’s quota,” Sadiq said, adding that around 15,000 others went on the pilgrimage via tourist visas and a “complimentary visa” that is handed by the Saudi government to diplomats and select individuals.
Attending Hajj with a tourist visa is a violation of regulations in the Kingdom. Rather, pilgrims should obtain special visas for religious tourism from Riyadh. Saudi Arabia has registered 1.8 million pilgrims this year. The Kingdom allocates each country with a specified quota of pilgrims to perform the Muslim obligation that is considered the fifth pillar of Islam.
The official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) has reported, citing Health Minister Fahd Al-Jalajel, that 1,301 pilgrims lost their lives during the Hajj pilgrimage “with 83% being unauthorized to perform Hajj and having walked long distances under direct sunlight without adequate shelter or comfort.”
The annual Hajj, a religious obligation for all Muslims who are financially and physically capable, draws millions of Muslims worldwide to gather in Saudi Arabia. Pilgrims journey to holy sites throughout the country, including the Kaaba in Mecca, which holds the esteemed status of being the holiest site in Islam.
Every year, thousands of individuals from the Kurdistan Region undertake this pilgrimage.
