According to reports and the Foreign Ministry, the scorching heat has killed hundreds of visitors during the Muslim annual pilgrimage to Mecca.
Diplomats told the French press agency AFP on Tuesday that at least 550 people died during the pilgrimage to Mecca. AFP, citing two Arab diplomats, said 323 of the dead were Egyptians, most of whom died from heat-related illnesses.
Reuters could not immediately verify those figures, but Saudi state television reported on Monday that temperatures soared to 51.8°C (125.2°F) in the shadow of Mecca’s Grand Mosque.
A 2024 study published in the Journal of Travel and Medicine found that rising global temperatures may be outpacing heat management strategies. A 2019 study by Geophysical Research Letters said pilgrims making the Hajj are facing “extreme danger” as climate change causes temperatures to rise in arid Saudi Arabia.
Thirty-five Tunisian nationals have died during the pilgrimage, Tunis Africa Press reported Tuesday.
Many of these deaths were due to extreme heat, families said on social media, as other families continued to search for missing relatives in Saudi hospitals.
The Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday it had issued 41 burial permits to Jordanian pilgrims. The ministry previously said at least six Jordanian nationals had died of heatstroke during the Hajj.
Iranian state news portal IRINN reported Tuesday that 11 Iranians had died and 24 were hospitalized during the pilgrimage, without giving the cause of death.
The Senegalese Press Agency reported Monday that three Senegalese nationals also died during the hajj. Indonesian health ministry data revealed on Tuesday that 144 Indonesian nationals had died during the pilgrimage. The data did not indicate whether any of the fatalities were due to heatstroke.
Physical Activity
The hajj is an annual pilgrimage in which millions of Muslims travel to Mecca to perform religious rituals taught to followers by the Prophet Muhammad 14 centuries ago.
A Saudi Arabian health official told Reuters on Monday, before the multiple death reports were released, that authorities had not noticed any unusual deaths among Muslim pilgrims despite the extremely high temperatures.
The ministry added that it has treated more than 2,700 pilgrims suffering from heat-related illnesses so far.
“The Hajj is a difficult task and we have to make the effort to perform the rituals in the heat and in the crowds,” an Egyptian pilgrim told Reuters on Sunday.
Pilgrims used umbrellas to protect themselves from the sun, but Saudi authorities warned pilgrims to stay hydrated and not go outside during the hottest hours, between 11am and 3pm.
The Hajj, one of the world’s largest mass celebrations, is a one-time obligation for able-bodied Muslims who can afford it. The event ends on Wednesday.
More than 1.8 million pilgrims are expected this year, according to the Saudi Bureau of Statistics.