Mina Stampede One of Tragic Episodes Amidst Hajj Pilgrimage

Liputan6.com, Jakarta - Tears of sorrow can be seen pouring down all across the globe following the fatal hajj stampede on Thursday 24 September 2015 which took place in Mina situated in the outskirt of the holy city of Mecca.

The catastrophic incident resulted with the recently reported escalating death toll of hundreds rising to thousands and leaving the rest seriously injured. The victimized were walking towards the area of Mina as part of their Islamic pilgrimage ritual and this area was specifically designed for the pilgrims to carry out the symbolic gesture of throwing pebbles against three stonewalls that Muslims believe as representing the devil.

The tragedy, which occurred not far rom where the tents of 160,000 pilgrims were suppose to spend the night during their pilgrimage routine called street 204, did not stop the survivors of the disastrous stampede from continuing their journey to the arena of devil stoning.

Citing from Al Jazeera, Saudi Arabia’s crown, Prince Mohamed Bin Nayef went to immediately instruct the conduction of a probe following the incident with findings reportedly submitted to King Salman.

Appropriate measures have been carried out in response to the stampede and Saudi authorities reportedly presented extensive precautions in safeguarding the massive Hajj group during the continuance of pilgrimage ritual.

Initially, even the local authority was uncertain regarding the actual number of death toll as the ramification of such stampede caused by the clash of two large waves of pilgrims in a narrowed street towards the stoning ritual arena.

According to the Guardian however, despite discrepancy found surrounding the often questioned number of casualties, Saudi Arabia has yielded foreign diplomats over thousand photographs on Monday 28 September 2015 depicting each individual who had died during the stampede.

The findings immediately indicated the likeliness of a significantly higher or continually escalating death tolls that originally informed.

The skyrocketing death toll of last Thursday’s stampede in Mina invited worldwide sympathies with scores of countries offering aid to help identification process of the dead thus that time needed for such would be greatly efficiently- reduced.

Indonesia is among many who has presented its interest to come and give generous help offer for the identification process. The Saudi Arabian authority through its Foreign Ministry Jubeir responded positively with initial remarks claiming that such generous intention from Indonesia will be further discussed with Saudi Arabia King Salman.

“Indonesia’s Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi’s generous aid offer as to the identification process of victims has been responded positively by the Arabian Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir,” Indonesian Director for Citizens Protection and Legal Aid, Muhammad Iqbal told Liputan6.com on Tuesday 29 September 2015.

Iqbal further informed how Indonesia’s stance as the biggest contributor to the number of Hajj pilgrims every year for the past several decades has made it an important actor necessitated to give aid when it comes to help Saudi Arabian authority in a tragedy as acute as Mina’s stampede.

Indonesian Hajj Pilgrimage Committee (PPIH) released the most updated data informing the death toll of Indonesians due to last Thursday’s stampede and it has been reported that up until this Wednesday (30/9/2015), there are as many as 57 who have lost their lives amidst pilgrimage ritual.

The stampede that occurred last Thursday is not the first traumatic episode in the pilgrimage rituals. A number of similar occurrences have taken place in the earlier years including the 1990 stampede which led to the death of 1,426 pilgrims, 1999 stampede killing 244 injuring hundreds and in 2001 causing 35 to lost their lives.

Two weeks earlier on the 11^th of September 2015, crane fell off the holy site of mecca killing hundreds. Such incident led many reminisce into the past of devastating tragedy in 2006 where an 8 story building previously exploited as a hotel near the Grand Mosque in the holy city collapsed killing 73 people, as cited in Mirror.co.uk. (Akp/Ein)