More than 345 people, including 6 Indians, were feared killed Thursday in a stampede during Haj on the last day of the symbolic stoning of the devil ritual in Mecca, according to Saudi Arabian officials.
The casualties are said to be mainly Egyptian and Indonesian pilgrims. The stampede occurred when thousands of pilgrims, who had assembled to complete the stoning ritual at the al-Jamarat, the 3 stone pillars representing the devil, tripped over luggage. About 2.5 million pilgrims are participating in the pilgrimage this year.
Minister of State for Extenal Affairs E Ahamed told PTI that the six Indian casualties include four women and two men, .
The minister said that under his instructions, three helplines had been opened in Mina for the Indians as well as outsiders to seek information.
The phone numbers:
The fax number:
Ahamed said, "There is no need to panic or to be alarmed." He added that more than 100 doctors and 140 paramedics had been deployed. The Indian envoy in Saudi Arabia said the situation was being closely monitored and Indian doctors had been deployed at major hospitals to identify if any dead or injured Indians had been brought there.
Stampedes have been a regular feature of the Haj. The worst incident took place in 1990 when 1,426 pilgrims were killed in the stampede.