Minister Urges Hajj Pilgrims to Convey Iran’s Message of Peace, Muslim Unity
Speaking in a ceremony on Monday to see off the first batch of Iranians leaving for Saudi Arabia to take part in this year’s Hajj, Seyed Reza Salehi Amiri said the Hajj pilgrims should make efforts to be cultural ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
He also referred to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei’s remarks on Hajj a day earlier, and said the pilgrims will have the opportunity to inform others of major Muslim world issues, like the enemy plots and the Zionist regime’s oppression of the people of Palestine.
Salehi Amiri further thanked all of the organizations and institutions that have contributed to the efforts for facilitating the participation of Iranian pilgrims in Hajj this year.
Over 85,000 Iranian pilgrims will take part in Hajj this year.
Iran announced in mid-March that applicants can go on Hajj pilgrimage this year following negotiations with Saudi officials after a hiatus in the wake of a diplomatic row with the kingdom.
In 2016, more than 1.8 million pilgrims attended Hajj, but Iranians stayed at home after tensions between Riyadh and Tehran boiled over following a deadly crush of people during the 2015 pilgrimage.
On September 24, 2015, thousands of people lost their lives in the deadly crush after Saudi authorities blocked a road in Mina during a ritual, forcing large crowds of pilgrims to collide.
The crush was the deadliest incident in the history of the pilgrimage. According to an Associated Press count based on official statements from the 36 countries that lost citizens in the disaster, more than 2,400 pilgrims were killed in the incidents.
Two weeks earlier, on September 11, 2015, a huge construction crane collapsed into Mecca’s Grand Mosque, killing more than 100 pilgrims, including several Iranians, and injuring over 200 others in the lead-up to the annual Hajj pilgrimage.
