Iran pilgrims flock to Saudi in diplomatic icebreaker
tehran — In a diplomatic icebreaker between political foes, tens of thousands of Muslim faithful from Iran have flocked to Saudi Arabia for the annual Haj pilgrimage.
This week’s Haj marks Iran’s return after their absence last year following a massive stampede in 2015 that killed around 2,300 people, including 464 Iranians.
About 86,000 Iranians have now arrived in Saudi Arabia for the Haj, joining two million Muslims from across the globe in converging on Makkah.
“I’m happy to see so many Iranians here... Political issues shouldn’t interfere in a religious duty, especially the Haj,” Abbas Ali, a 54-year-old Iranian, said on Monday at Jeddah airport that is the main entry point for pilgrims.
“It’s very difficult to describe my
90K is number of Iranians who are expected to attend the
Haj pilgrimage this year
feelings. We shouldn’t stop coming here because all of us are Muslims,” the newly-arrived “haji” from Zahedan in eastern Iran said.
In the absence of diplomatic relations and with its missions in Iran closed, Saudi Arabia agreed to issue electronic visas for Iranian pilgrims. Saudi Arabia has allowed Iran’s national carrier Iran Air to fly in most of the Islamic republic’s pilgrims, while some were transported by the kingdom’s carrier.—