폭염 속 '성지순례 참사' 사망 1,300명 넘어 사우디 공식 집계
Saudi Arabia says over 13 hundred people died during the six-day hajj pilgrimage which came to an end last week.
The deaths were mostly heat-related, while over 80 percent of those who lost their lives were "unauthorized" to be there.
Lee Seung-jae reports.
The hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims, located in Saudi Arabia.
The pilgrimage is a mandatory religious duty that must be carried out by all adult Muslims at least once in their lifetime, who are physically and financially capable of making the trip.
However, this year's hajj, which ran from June 14th to 19th, turned deadly, as Saudi Arabia says over 13 hundred people died during the six-day pilgrimage period this year.
Releasing the official figures for the first time, the government said Sunday that one-thousand-three-hundred-one pilgrims died, mostly due to "heat stress."
Temperatures above 51 degrees Celsius were recorded during this period, with many people walking long distances under direct sunlight, without adequate shelter or comfort.
Of the dead, 83 percent were not authorized to make the pilgrimage.
Saudi Arabia requires licenses to legally access Mecca, with 1-point-8 million issued each year.
As licenses can cost several thousand U.S. dollars, many make unauthorized pilgrimages.
Those without proper documents don't travel in organized tour buses with air conditioning or easy access to water and food supplies.
The permits are allocated to countries on a quota system, and are distributed through a lottery.
Lee Seung-jae, Arirang News.
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2024-06-24, 09:00 (KST)
