Mina Tragedy

I shall be thankful if you very kindly publish this letter in the columns of your esteemed daily.
On 22 September a tragic incident took the life of more than 700 hundred people, above 850 had been injured in Hajj stampede at Mina. According to local newspaper many of them were Pakistani among the victims of Mina. Most of them are still missing.
It was reported that incident took place due to undisciplined pilgrims. The Saudi Minister of health said that many pilgrims move without respecting the timetables established by the authorities, which was the principal reason for this type of incident. If the pilgrims had followed the instructions, this type of incident could have been avoided. It is indecent of him to criticize the dead like that. However an emergency was declared in all nearby hospitals. At least 4,000 emergency personnel’s 220 ambulances and six helicopters are taking part in the rescue operation
During the stampede many hajjis lost their mobile phones, therefore they could not contact their families back home. There is a panic among the families of victims.
According to the minister of religious affairs all Pakistani who died in the stampede will be buried in Makkah.
I request the government and to the foreign minister to bring back the bodies of martyrs to their homeland and should be hand it over to their relatives so they could bury themselves.
May Allah rest their soul in peace.
Amen!
RANA HASSAN,
Karachi, September 28.

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