Iran Turns to France to Pursue Mina Incident Case

The head of Iran's Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization announced that France will mediate in the Mina incident case, while he acknowledged that Saudi Arabia has not been willing to negotiate on this matter. Saeed Ohadi stated, "France will mediate to resolve the Mina disaster case between Iran and Saudi Arabia." In a special news program on Monday evening, August 9, he said that the Iranian Foreign Ministry has "prepared the ground for legal follow-up of the Mina disaster case through France and soon a delegation from this ministry will go to France to address some issues." Ohadi also admitted that Saudi Arabia has "not yet been willing to negotiate on this issue." He further mentioned that Saudi Arabia has not yet paid the "blood money" for the victims of the Mina incident and the crane collapse in the country. On September 20, 2015, at least 110 people were killed in a crane collapse at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, including 11 Iranians. A few months later, on the second day of the month of Mehr that year, hundreds were trampled during the Hajj ceremony and killed. The Islamic Republic claims that at least 460 of the casualties were also Iranian. These incidents occurred amid intense regional rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Last January, Saudi Arabia executed dozens of individuals accused of terrorism and alleged members of al-Qaeda. One of those executed was Sheikh Nimr Baqr al-Nimr, a leader of Shia Muslims in Saudi Arabia. His execution sparked outrage among Iranian officials, leading to hundreds of protesters attacking and setting fire to the Saudi embassy and consulate in Tehran and Mashhad. This incident resulted in Saudi Arabia severing diplomatic relations with Iran, and several other Arab-Islamic countries took similar actions or downgraded their relations with the Islamic Republic. Now, the head of Iran's Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization has stated that since the diplomatic relations between the two countries are severed, the Islamic Republic has "no access to Saudi information sources" regarding the Mina incident and "under such circumstances can only rely on its own resources." The appeal to France for mediation may also be an attempt to have this country play a role as an intermediary between the two nations; however, the Iranian official did not provide any explanation regarding France's role.