Among more than a thousand people who died from the heat during this year’s Hajj in Mecca, three pilgrims were from Tajikistan. This was reported to Asia-Plus by the country’s Committee on Religious Affairs.
“The deceased pilgrims were from Dushanbe, Khujand (Sughd region), and the Farhor district of the Khatlon region. All of them were buried in Saudi Arabia,” the Committee said. They could not provide the names or ages of the deceased. This year, 7,000 pilgrims from Tajikistan went to the Muslim holy sites. According to the Committee, the first group returning from Hajj will arrive in the republic on June 23.
According to the latest data, the number of pilgrims who died during the Hajj in Mecca has exceeded 1,000. The increase in the death toll was attributed to air temperatures in the shade exceeding +50 degrees. It is noted that thousands of people suffered from heatstroke while standing on Mount Arafat and performing the Tawaf around the Kaaba, which are part of the Hajj. This year, more than 1,800,000 pilgrims from around the world visited Mecca.