At least 550 pilgrims died during Hajj this year: diplomats

The annual Hajj pilgrimage was marred by extreme temperatures, resulting in the deaths of at least 550 pilgrims, AFP reported on Wednesday citing Arab diplomats.

The heatwave was a major challenge for the pilgrims as temperatures reached up to 51.8 degrees Celsius (125 Fahrenheit) on Monday in Saudi Arabia.

Most of the dead pilgrims belonged to Egypt, who passed away due to heat-related illnesse, two diplomats said.

“All of them (323 Egyptians) died because of heat except for one who sustained fatal injuries during a minor crowd crush," AFP said quoting one of the diplomats. 

He added that the figures were obtained from the hospital morgue in the Al-Muaisem neighbourhood of Makkah.

At least 60 Jordanian pilgrims have also lost their lives, exceeding the official figure of 41 reported by Amman on Tuesday.

Egypt's Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that it is working with Saudi authorities to locate Egyptians who went missing during the Hajj. 

While the ministry confirmed the death of pilgrims, it did not specify whether the deceased included Egyptian citizens.

Saudi authorities have reported treating over 2,000 pilgrims for heatstroke but have not updated the figure or provided information on the number of deaths since Sunday.

It should be noted that at least 240 pilgrims from various countries died during the Hajj last year, with the majority being Indonesians.