Iran to Lodge Complaint against Saudi Arabia for Deaths of Pilgrims: Vice-President

Iran’s Vice-President Mohammad Baqer Nobakht said on Tuesday that Tehran is going to file a complaint against Saudi Arabia for its shortcomings that led to a tragic crush of pilgrims during the annual Hajj rituals and deaths of Iranians.

Speaking to reporters in a weekly press conference in Tehran, Nobakht announced that Iran will lodge a complaint against Saudi Arabia and follow up with legal actions.

Tehran also pursues mechanisms in the international arena to pursue the case, the vice president added.

He made it clear that Iran will spare no efforts to defend the rights of the Iranian pilgrims, the missing ones and those injured in the disaster.

Asked about Riyadh’s possible decision to bury the dead pilgrims in the Arab country, Nobakht underlined that the Saudis cannot do that without the official procedures or permission from the victims’ families, stressing that Iran has not granted permission to Saudi Arabia to do that.

The deadly crush of pilgrims in Mina, near the Saudi city of Mecca, on Thursday killed thousands during religious rituals, marking the worst ever Hajj disaster.

So far, at least 239 Iranian pilgrims are confirmed to have died in the incident. Some 240 other Iranians are still unaccounted for.



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