577 Global Hajj Pilgrims Die Due to Extreme Weather in Saudi Arabia

The French news agency, Agence France Presse (AFP), reported that as of Tuesday (June 18, 2024), 577 Hajj pilgrims had died from extreme heat in Saudi Arabia.

Of that number, 323 pilgrims were from Egypt and 60 from Jordan.

"All (Egyptians) died from heatstroke, except for one who suffered a fatal injury in a crowd crush," said a Saudi Arabian diplomat, as reported by AFP on Tuesday (June 18, 2024).

Meanwhile, the nationalities of 194 pilgrims who reportedly died from the heat in Saudi Arabia have not been specified.

Saudi Arabia is reportedly experiencing extreme heat, with temperatures reaching 48 degrees Celsius. In one location of worship, the Grand Mosque in Mecca, the temperature reached 51.8 degrees Celsius.

In addition, Saudi Arabian authorities reported that as of Sunday (June 16, 2024), they had treated more than 2,000 Hajj pilgrims suffering from heat stress. However, this figure has not been updated, and there is no information on further casualties.

For information, 1.8 million pilgrims from around the world performed the Hajj pilgrimage this year, with 1.6 million coming from abroad, including Indonesia.