453 killed and hundreds injured in stampede during Hajj stone-throwing ritual

More than 450 people have been killed and hundreds more injured in a stampede during the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca. The crush happened when two large groups of pilgrims arrived together at a crossroads in the camp city at Mina, a few kiliometres from the Muslim holy city. Video posted on Twitter showed bodies, clad in the white towelling of those undertaking haj, lying on the ground by the side of the road, surrounded by debris, as pilgrims and rescue workers attempted to revive them. The Saudi civil defence directorate said the death toll had risen to 453 and that 719 people were injured.

We have a stampede accident in Mina and civil defense is dealing with it

Interior ministry spokesman Brig. Gen. Mansour al-Turki

The stampede occurred on the first day of Eid al-Adha, or the Feast of the Sacrifice. Pilgrims converge on Mina to throw stones at pillars representing the devil. Some 4,000 security personnel, along with more than 220 emergency and rescue units, have been sent to the scene. But there were claims that the disaster happened when security officials closed one of four paths being used by pilgrims. Preparations for the Hajj were marred when a crane collapsed at Mecca’s Grand Mosque this month, killing 109 people.

Middle East haj