At least13 Ethiopian Muslim pilgrims killed in Saudi stampede

“The Saudi obstinacy, playing a] blame game and shirking its heavy responsibility for the death of several thousand pilgrims of the House of God will further tarnish Saudi Arabia’s image in the world“, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Marzieh Afkham, said on Tuesday.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei on Wednesday called on Muslim countries to investigate the deadly crush on the Islamic hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia last Thursday that killed 769 people including at least 239 Iranians.

The latest incident comes within two weeks of a crane collapse at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, killing 109 people on September 11.

Abdullah R. Makwinja CorrespondentHundreds of Hajj pilgrims were killed and hundreds more injured in the heartbreaking stampede in Mina during the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia last week.

It has so far been confirmed that five Tanzanians were killed in the incident, the worst to happen in the annual pilgrimage in 25 years.

Hassan Rouhani gave no specific figures in a speech to the United Nation summit.

According to information released on the ministry’s official website, 46 Pakistani pilgrims have been martyred while 40 others are injured.

Akintola went on to assert that claims by the Saudi authorities that African pilgrims had been responsible for the stampede were false.

Indonesia, meanwhile, has complained that Saudi authorities only granted its diplomats full access to the dead on Monday night, four days after the disaster.

He said that there are 76 people admitted in 17 hospitals in Saudi Arabia which are also being checked to identify the Indian pilgrims.

Abdullah al-Ali, chief executive of the Kuwait-based electronic security firm Cyberkov, said he couldn’t immediately tell whether the false statement came from a cyberattack.

He said many died due to the excessive heat, exhaustion and dehydration.

The comments underscored Iran’s increased frustration at Saudi Arabia’s refusal to allow a cargo plane into the kingdom to retrieve the dead and take them back to Tehran.

For nine years, there had been no major disasters at the Hajj, a much lauded success.

“In order for transparency and re-assurance, we urge that countries whose citizens perished in the two incidents be made members of the body of inquiry”.