Iran insists on sending pilgrims to Hajj: Official
(last modified Mon, 09 May 2016 04:56:08 GMT )
May 09, 2016 04:56 UTC
  • Head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization Saeed Ohadi
    Head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization Saeed Ohadi

Iran is still insistent that its nationals should be able to fulfill this year’s Hajj pilgrimage, Head of Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization Saeed Ohadi said, deploring Saudi Arabia for its muted response and inaction on the case.

Speaking to the Tasnim News Agency on Sunday, Ohadi said Iran is standing firm in its decision to deploy Hajj pilgrims to Saudi Arabia, since fulfilling the pilgrimage is a religious duty and an inalienable right of Iranian Muslims.

However, he added, Saudi Arabian officials’ conduct imply that they are not willing to let Iranians make the pilgrimage.

Saudi officials have not still made any comments on how Iranians are going to get visas and what measures will be taken to ensure their security, he noted.

Ohadi explained that while time is running out for making the necessary preparations for sending pilgrims to Hajj, the Saudi side has not done anything to address the remaining issues.

Iran insists that the safety of travelers to Saudi Arabia must be ensured, given the disaster in Mina that killed many Iranian pilgrims in Last year’s Hajj.

More than 460 Iranians were among the thousands of pilgrims who died on September 24, 2015, in a crush in Mina, near Mecca.

The incident marked the worst ever tragedy during Hajj.

ME

 

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