At least one Dane among Mecca stampede victims
The Local Denmark - [email protected]
Published: 24 Sep, 2015 CET.
Updated: Thu 24 Sep 2015 15:27 CET
At least one Dane is among the victims of a tragic stampede that killed over 700 people and left hundreds more injured during the Hajj pilgrimage outside of Mecca on Thursday.
A stampede during the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca on Thursday has left at least 717 people dead and over 800 injured, Saudi officials have said.
The Danish Foreign Ministry confirmed via Twitter that a Dane is among the victims.
“The Foreign Ministry is aware of a single Danish injury in Mina, Saudi Arabia,” the ministry wrote.
Udenrigsministeriet har kendskab til en enkelt dansk tilskadekommen i Mina, Saudi Arabien.
— UM Borgerservice (@UMBorgerservice) September 24, 2015
When contacted by the media, the ministry said that it was in contact with the Danish individual’s family and would not comment further for the time being.
According to CNN, the stampede occurred during an Islamic ritual known as “stoning the devil” in a tent in Mina, which is around five kilometres east of Mecca.
As of shortly after 3pm, the death toll stood at 717 and the number of injured was at 805.
A spokesman for the Islamic Society in Denmark (Det Islamisk Trossamfund) estimated to news agency Ritzau that upwards of 200 Danish Muslims are in Saudi Arabia for the annual pilgrimage.
“People are dying while doing the most sacred thing they can do. Bat at the same time, as Muslims we understand that death can come at any time and what better circumstances than to die while worshipping God,” Imran Shah said.
Thursday’s tragedy outside of Mecca comes less than two weeks after a crane collapse in the holy city’s Grand Mosque killed more than 100 people.
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A stampede during the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca on Thursday has left at least 717 people dead and over 800 injured, Saudi officials have said.
The Danish Foreign Ministry confirmed via Twitter that a Dane is among the victims.
“The Foreign Ministry is aware of a single Danish injury in Mina, Saudi Arabia,” the ministry wrote.
Udenrigsministeriet har kendskab til en enkelt dansk tilskadekommen i Mina, Saudi Arabien.
— UM Borgerservice (@UMBorgerservice) September 24, 2015
When contacted by the media, the ministry said that it was in contact with the Danish individual’s family and would not comment further for the time being.
According to CNN, the stampede occurred during an Islamic ritual known as “stoning the devil” in a tent in Mina, which is around five kilometres east of Mecca.
As of shortly after 3pm, the death toll stood at 717 and the number of injured was at 805.
A spokesman for the Islamic Society in Denmark (Det Islamisk Trossamfund) estimated to news agency Ritzau that upwards of 200 Danish Muslims are in Saudi Arabia for the annual pilgrimage.
“People are dying while doing the most sacred thing they can do. Bat at the same time, as Muslims we understand that death can come at any time and what better circumstances than to die while worshipping God,” Imran Shah said.
Thursday’s tragedy outside of Mecca comes less than two weeks after a crane collapse in the holy city’s Grand Mosque killed more than 100 people.
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