Anti-Saudi Protests

There is always the possibility of an incident happening when three million people gather in an open atmosphere. Such is the case in the Hajj ceremonies which take place every year and any mismanagement could lead to bitter events. The following points should be pointed out:

1-A huge number of people gather in one place during the Hajj ceremonies in a specified period of time.

2-These people come from different countries and speak different languages, thus, when an accident happens they cannot communicate with each other.

3-This is not the first time that these groups of people gather in Saudi Arabia and since many years ago these ceremonies have been taking place in this country, thus, they could be well-managed. Saudi Arabia receives a great income from these ceremonies and it is its duty to guarantee the security of these pilgrims. But it seems that it has failed in this regard.

4- We must also remember that we should not just look for the culprit. We must take certain measures to prevent such accidents because similar incidents have happened in the past.

In general, it can be said that the pilgrims were not well trained and the countries were not capable enough of managing the crisis. Saudi forces neither had the scientific nor the technical ability to control the situation.

Under such conditions, statements are being made that next year five million, instead of three million pilgrims, will be allowed to perform these ceremonies because the development plans will be completed by then. Of course Iran has officially protested against Saudi Arabia for its weak management because the lives of the pilgrims were threatened. This protest could be made through three steps:

The first step is to summon Saudi Arabia’s charge d’affaires. This step has already been taken.

The second step is to ask for compensation from the Saudi government and Saudi Arabia must apologize.

The third step is that until the affairs regarding the Hajj ceremonies are not well managed and an international fact-finding commission is not formed, Iran must not allow the pilgrims to participate in the Hajj ceremonies.