Iran Hajj Organization: Saudis Depriving Iranian Pilgrims

In a statement on Sunday, the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization said the time limit for making and finalizing arrangements for the Iranian pilgrims’ trips has now elapsed, and that the Islamic Republic’s legitimate requests have gone unanswered.

“Due to the continuation of the Saudi government’s obstructionism, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s dear pilgrims will be deprived of attending this year’s Hajj,” the statement said, holding Riyadh accountable for the problem.

Highlighting a number of Saudi moves to hinder Hajj arrangements, the statement denounced the Riyadh regime for politicizing the Hajj and altering the provisions of a routine agreement it signs with Iran every year.

Iran insisted that the safety of travellers 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.

There were already doubts about participation of Iranian pilgrims in the 2016 Hajj, since tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia ran high following Riyadh’s execution of prominent Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, and a subsequent attack by outraged Iranian protesters on the Saudi embassy in Tehran, which resulted in the Arab country’s decision to sever its ties with the Islamic Republic.