Head of Hajj Organization: Over 5,000 Mina Victims Buried in Mecca

According to the head of Iran's Hajj Organization and based on statements from Saudi officials, more than 5,000 victims of the Mina tragedy have been buried in Mecca. In a report by ISNA, Saeed Ohadi, head of Iran's Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization, provided new statistics on the victims of the Mina incident on Sunday, October 26, following his return from Saudi Arabia. Mr. Ohadi stated, 'According to Saudi officials in joint meetings, the number of victims of the Mina tragedy has reached nearly 6,000.' He mentioned that 25 trucks carrying the bodies of the Mina victims were transferred under poor conditions to the large morgue in Mecca, making the identification of Iranian victims among these bodies very difficult. He further announced that 'the nails of all buried victims were taken for DNA testing, and fingerprints were also collected,' adding, 'The Saudis were forced to bury the bodies due to the unsuitable conditions of the morgues and the microbial load, by royal decree.' On October 22, Mr. Ohadi had told IRNA that based on intelligence data, DNA samples and fingerprints had been taken from 29 Iranian victims buried in Saudi Arabia. He also commented on the handling of the bodies in Saudi Arabia, saying, 'Saudi officials confirm that the conditions for handling the bodies were not correct and standard, which has caused even physical changes in the faces of the deceased; however, I did not see any disrespect or insult to the bodies of the Mina tragedy.' This Iranian official added, 'They placed the bodies on stretchers, and since the floor of the truck used for transporting the bodies was not standard, they used a forklift to place the stretcher inside the truck.' According to the head of the Hajj Organization, so far, the Saudis have buried 'in 14 rows and in each row 305 bodies' individually, not collectively. He also noted the burial of 29 Iranian victims in Mecca, which occurred before the Iranian government was informed, stating, 'The burial site and the full names of these pilgrims are identifiable; considering the concerns that existed, I visited the burial site of the deceased and even the type of graves, and they buried the bodies while observing all religious matters.' Mr. Ohadi also mentioned reaching an agreement with Saudi health and Hajj officials for the retrieval of the buried bodies, stating, 'We agreed with Saudi officials that after identifying the 29 deceased, we would definitely act according to the decision of their families regarding whether these pilgrims' bodies should remain in Saudi Arabia or not.' The head of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization also provided updates on the status of 36 missing Iranian pilgrims, announcing, 'A special committee has been formed at the Iranian consulate in Jeddah, and a joint meeting has been held with Saudi health and Hajj officials; we hope to clarify the status of these 36 individuals more quickly.' Mr. Ohadi also addressed the statistical discrepancies regarding the Mina victims, saying, 'Unfortunately, many countries began identifying their deceased several days after the Mina tragedy, such that Indonesia reported having two deceased by the fifth day, while now it reports 220 deceased; this is one of the reasons that countries and even Saudi officials have been unable to provide specific statistics.' In this context, a few days ago, the Associated Press reported that at least 1,480 people were killed in this incident based on statistics collected from various countries. 64,000 Iranian pilgrims participated in this year's Hajj, and the number of Iranian fatalities has been reported as either 464 or 465. In recent days, the issue of transferring the bodies of this year's Hajj victims to Iran has been a point of contention between Iran and Saudi Arabia, with Iran stating that no families of the deceased Iranian pilgrims are willing for their bodies to be buried in Mecca. Ayatollah Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, on October 8, again accused Saudi officials of failing to fulfill their responsibilities and transferring the bodies to Iran, threatening that if Iran were to react, it would be a harsh and severe response. Ultimately, officials from both countries announced that they had reached an agreement for the transfer of the bodies of Iranian victims of this incident.