Website of Pakistan Embassy in Saudi Arabia silent over Mina stampede and reports of death of over 260 Pakistanis in the incident
Islamabad, Pakistan: Pakistan Embassy in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia did not post any information on its website even 40 hours after historic tragedy of stampede that reportedly killed over 770 Hujjaj including 230 plus Pakistanis as reported by Guardian newspaper of United Kingdom.
Foreign Office of Pakistan through its spokesman Qazi Khalil refuted Guardian story on late Saturday evening. Qazi said the UK newspaper published “false” news item. He said that 11 deceased Pakistanis have been identified as yet and that the FO is in contact with Pakistani Embassy in Saudi Arabia over issue of missing pilgrims after Mina stampede. However, the spokesman said it is impossible to compile complete list of missing Pakistani pilgrims. However, Ministry of Religious Affairs of Pakistan released a list indicating that deaths are 18 so far. Ministry released this list much before Foreign Office statement.
List of Ministry is hereunder:
Pakistani Ambassador Mr. Manzoor ul Haq was available to media on telephone but did not post any information about dead and injured Pakistanis. Only one telephone line number was given to check the status and information about missing Pakistanis but this number got constantly engage because of load of incoming call traffic.
Manzoor ul Haq informed media that only 11 Pakistanis are shaheed while over 260 are missing and this was impossible for him to find where they were in a crowed of over 2.5 million people in Mecca. However, he failed to give reason that why these over 260 Hujjaj have not contacted their families or Pakistani embassy to inform their well being.
Websites of embassies of other countries are always first information window for people to find their relatives and their status in case of any emergency, accident, plane crash, fire incidents of stampede. However, no relative or any victim of this historic tragedy can find any information from website of Pakistan in KSA.
Website of Saudi Arabian Embassy in Islamabad is also silent and is not helpful to provide information about this historic tragedy.
It may be mentioned that a stampede broke out in Mina outside holy city of Makkah during annual Hajj pilgrimage rituals on Thursday which resulted in the deaths of at least 770 Hujjaj, according to the Saudi civil defence, reports Dispatch News Desk news agency. Over 960 persons are critically injured so far.
UK-based Guardian claims following citizens of following countries were dead:
Pakistan, 236; Iran, 131; Morocco, 87; India, 14; Egypt, 14; Somalia, 8; Senegal, 5; Tanzania, 4; Turkey, 4; Algeria, 3; Kenya, 3; Indonesia, 3; Burundi, 1; and Netherlands, 1.
“Only blood and blood and blood everywhere of Humans not sacrificial animals. Death will higher because people also died of suffocation”, said eyewitnesses.
Hujjaj who survived in incident said that Mina incident needs an international investigation to know what actually happen? .
