Saudi rejects proposal of jointly handling Hajj pilgrimage affairs - report

Saudi Arabia has rejected any proposal of jointly handling Hajj pilgrimage affairs, according to the Mehr news agency. The Iranian agency reported that Advisor to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and Governor of the Makkah region Prince Khalid al-Faisal has rejected any proposal on handling the Hajj pilgrimage affairs through an international body, claiming that such proposals are aimed at the "politicization of Hajj".

Saudis snub proposal on abandoning Hajj monopoly https://t.co/YuRcIyYkfP

— Mehr News Agency (@MehrnewsCom) July 30, 2019

Several Islamic countries have suggested in the past years that the Hajj affairs should be handled through an international organization due to Saudi Arabia's failure in dealing with the matter as proved by a number of incidents.

The Iranian agency reported that Prince Khalid al-Faisal reacted to such proposals while speaking to a Saudi daily Asharq Al-Awsat on Tuesday claiming that the only concern he has for the pilgrimage is its "exploitation for non-religious purposes." The Makkah governor also added that Saudi takes everything into account to ensure the safety of the pilgrims and offer them all possible facilitation to ensure their holy journey takes place smoothly.

It should be noted that in September 2015, a deadly human crush occurred during Hajj rituals in Mina, near Mecca. Days into the incident, Saudi Arabia published a death toll of 770 but refused to update it. Earlier that month, a massive construction crane operated by the Saudi Binladin Group conglomerate collapsed onto Mecca's Grand Mosque, killing more than 100 pilgrims, including 11 Iranians, and injuring over 200 others, 32 of them from Iran.