Families of the Egyptians who died in the Hajj stampede have denounced the Egyptian authorities’ failure to assist them in determining the whereabouts of their relatives.
The catastrophe on the first day of the Islamic feast of Eid al-Adha last Thursday left 769 people of various nationalities dead and more than 800 wounded according to Saudi Authorities, with 78 Egyptian deaths recorded by the Egyptian Endowments Ministry.
According to the ministry, 84 other pilgrims remain missing, to the dismay of their families, who suggest that Egypt’s official Hajj delegation and diplomatic mission in Saudi Arabia were not helpful enough.
Adel Abdel Qader, a member of the Farmers' Syndicate, said that he heard his brother was injured and was being treated in a hospital in Jeddah, but the fate of his brother’s wife remained unknown until recently.
“We found out from the Facebook page of the Egyptian community listing the names of the dead and the injured that she died in a hospital,” he said. “The Saudi authorities and the Egyptian mission gave us a hard time before finally issuing her death certificate.”
Enayat al-Hagg said she posted the pictures of her missing uncle and his wife on Facebook after she lost hope in waiting for news from the Egyptian mission and the Saudi Health Ministry. “They never answer the phone,” she said.
Al-Masry Al-Youm also called the Egyptian mission and the Egyptian consulate in Jeddah but no one replied.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
