The Obama administration on Thursday offered its condolences to the families of the 700 killed, and the 800 injured during a human stampede near Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on the first day of Eid al-Adha, a high holy day for Muslims.
“The United States expresses its deepest condolences to the families of the hundreds of Hajj pilgrims killed and hundreds more injured in the heartbreaking stampede in Mina, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” said National Security Council spokesman Ned Rice. “Our thoughts are with them and the more than two million people undertaking the Hajj this year.”
“At this time, during the blessed holiday of Eid al-Adha, the United States stands in support of Muslims around the world in the wake of this terrible tragedy,” added State Department spokesman John Kirby.
The Hajj is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca undertaken by many Muslims. This is the worst accident at the Hajj since 1990, when 1,426 pilgrims died in a stampede accident, The New York Times reported.
