At least 68 Indian nationals were killed as suspected heat-related deaths during the Hajj pilgrimage soared past 600, a Saudi Arabian diplomat said.
"We have confirmed around 68 deaths... Some were because of natural causes and we had many old-age pilgrims. And some are due to the weather conditions, that's what we assume," news agency AFP reported, quoting the diplomat, who wished to remain anonymous.
This new count follows reports from two Arab diplomats on Tuesday, who indicated that 550 pilgrims had died during the Hajj. Among these were 323 Egyptians and 60 Jordanians, with heat being a primary cause of death, according to a Saudi diplomat.
Additional fatalities have been confirmed by Indonesia, Iran, Senegal, Tunisia, and Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, although in many cases, the cause of death has not been specified. According to AFP, the death toll has reached 645.
Over 200 pilgrims reportedly died last year, with most of the victims being Indonesians. This year, Saudi Arabia did not provide specific information on the fatalities but reported more than 2,700 cases of "heat exhaustion" on Sunday alone.
An Indian diplomat mentioned that some Indian pilgrims were missing, though he did not give an exact number. He noted that this is a recurring issue each year and did not consider the number of fatalities to be unusually high compared to previous years. "It's somewhat similar to last year but we will know more in the coming days."
The Hajj has taken place during the hot Saudi summer for several years. A recent study revealed that temperatures in the pilgrimage area are rising by 0.4 degree Celsius each decade.
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