i am waiting to find out what the divine message is in all this. first, there were swine flu (yeah, *swine flu*) deaths among pilgrims. now there is unusual rain. i am sure some mullah will come up with a terrific explanation, just as they have explained that mohammedans must not cut their beards so that the angels who are hanging from each beard hair wouldn't fall off.
to mix metaphors wildly, i do give thanks for the turkey and for the fact that such satisfying explanations exist.
also, note of the 77 dead, 56 are foreigners resident in saudi arabia. pretty good chance these are subcontinental mohammedans toiling away in the desert waste-land.
i do love this part of the haj -- the business of throwing stones at the devil. are there stones in mecca, this being a desert? i bet they are trucked in.
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Casualties not just "subcontinental", but also East Asian. Here below is some info on Haj "incidents" in all of which Asian Mohamedans were the major casualties:
Hundreds killed in Hajj stampede 12 Jan 06
At least 345 Muslim pilgrims have died in a crush during the stone-throwing ritual at the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, officials say.
… … In 2004, more than 200 pilgrims were trampled to death while performing the same ceremony.
The latest deadly stampede comes days after more than 70 people died when a hostel for pilgrims collapsed in the Saudi city of Mecca.
HAJJ DISASTERS:
1987: 400 die as Saudi authorities confront pro-Iranian demonstration
1990: 1,426 killed in tunnel leading to holy sites
1994: 270 killed in stampede
1997: 343 die and 1,500 injured in fire
1998: >118 trampled to death
2001: 35 die in stampede
2003: 14 crushed to death
2004: 251 dead in stampede
2006 Mecca hostel collapse 2006 Mecca hostel collapse
… occurred in Mecca, Saudi Arabia on 5 January 2006. A hostel housing Muslim pilgrims performing Hajj collapsed, killing 76 people….
Originally, the Saudi government declared that thirteen people had died, but this figure quickly rose settling at seventy six. Most of those who died were passers-by, people shopping in the markets or returning from the Masjid al Haram after Salat. Most were foreign nationals from Arab and Asian nations.
Also: Incidents during the Hajj
… In December 1975 an exploding gas cylinder caused a fire in a tent colony and resulted in the deaths of 200 pilgrims.
…On November 20, 1979 a group of about 200 militants occupied the Grand Mosque, and later were expelled by Pakistani and French forces (three Frenchmen, reportedly, who had been hastily converted to Islam for the occasion and entered the city with special permission), leaving about 250 dead, and 600 wounded.
… On July 9, 1989 2 bombs exploded, killing 1 pilgrim and wounding another 16. Saudi authorities executed 16 Kuwaiti Shiite Muslims for the bombings after originally suspecting Iranian terrorists.
and one not directly connected with Hajj: Gas pipeline blaze kills 28 in Saudi Gulf Times | Monday, 19 November, 2007
RIYADH: Twenty-eight people were killed and 12 others are missing after a fire broke out on a gas pipeline in an oil-rich desert area of Saudi Arabia yesterday, one of the worst of its kind in the kingdom. … Western diplomats said most of the dead appeared to be Asian workers along with at least one Lebanese national. They said no Western victims had been identified. Indian officials said that six Indians were among the victims.
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