Awqaf mission remains in Saudi Arabia to look for missing pilgrims

AMMAN – Search was still under way Tuesday for two Jordanian pilgrims who went missing after the Hajj stampede incident in Mecca. 

“Our teams in Mecca are still looking for 70-year-old Sami Batayneh and 39-year-old Tareq Hassan, who are missing. We are coordinating with Saudi authorities and if there is any new information, we will announce it,” Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Hayel Dawood and told The Jordan Times on Tuesday. 

“We are checking all possible locations, hospitals and healthcare centres. We have not found anything yet,” he said. 

The ministry’s team will remain in Mecca until next Saturday. Thereafter, the Jordanian consulate in Jeddah will take over and continue looking for the lost pilgrims if needed, he said. 

The stampede, which occurred Thursday between the Jamarat pillars and the bridge in Mina, during the ritual of the Stoning of the Devil, resulted in the death of over 700 pilgrims and injury to hundreds others.

Hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, is one of the five pillars of Islam and considered the religious high point of a Muslim’s life. It is performed during a five-day period from the 9th through to the 13th of Dhul Hijja, the 12th month of the Muslim lunar calendar.

Jordanian Ahmad Abu Awali, 56 years old, lost his life during the stampede. 

Some 5,600 Jordanians performed Hajj rituals through the ministry this year, including administrative teams. The number of 1948 Palestinian pilgrims reached 3,600 this year.