Illegal Hajj Permits: Egypt to prosecute 16 tourism companies
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Cairo: The Egyptian administration cancelled 16 tourism companies' licences over the illegal facilitation of pilgrims to travel to Mecca. Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly referred the companies' managers to the public prosecutor's office, Agence France-Presse reported, citing the Egyptian cabinet.
The Prime Minister issued an order regarding the above-mentioned after more than 1,100 deaths were reported due to high temperatures during this year's Hajj.
Earlier this week, Arab diplomats told AFP that out of those who died, 658 were from Egypt, and 630 were unregistered pilgrims.
A statement released by the Egyptian cabinet said, "The prime minister has ordered the licences of these companies to be revoked, their managers to be referred to the public prosecutor, and the imposition of a fine to benefit the families of the pilgrims who died because of them," AFP quoted.
The statement explained that the lion's share of deaths reported among Egyptian pilgrims were unregistered, and they did not enter Mecca through official channels. The companies that brought them to the holy land for Hajj use personal visit visas, which do not provide them with official channels.
Countries are given Hajj permits through a quota system. Some pilgrims who cannot afford the cost attempt performing Hajj without a permit, though there are risks of arrest and deportation if caught by Saudi security forces.
Since 2019, after Saudi Arabia introduced a general tourism visa, some pilgrims have been using it to enter Mecca, which has saved them thousands of dollars.
According to officials, 577 deaths were reported on the two busiest days of Hajj, the Arafah day and Sunday at the ritual of "stoning of the devil" ritual in Mina.