Twelfth Egyptian pilgrim dies in Saudi Arabia: Health Ministry

CAIRO – 27 August 2017: The twelfth Egyptian pilgrim died on Sunday during pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, the Egyptian Health Ministry said.

The head of Egypt’s official Hajj medical mission for this pilgrimage season, Ahmed el-Ansari, clarified that the pilgrim, 70-year-old Soad Kamel Tawfik Birm from Port Said governorate, died after suffering a cardiac arrest in Al Nour Hospital in Medina.

The emergency room of Egypt’s medical mission in Mecca were notified, and a death certificate will be issued after coordinating with the concerned authorities.

A total of 78,000 Egyptians are registered to have traveled to Hajj this year, including 22,000 who have won the governmental Hajj draw.

The number of Egyptian pilgrims has risen by five percent in five years, a statement said, adding that the Ministry exerts all efforts to ensure the safety and security of the pilgrims before and after completion of the Hajj rituals.

Ten days ago, the first batch of more than 5,000 Egyptian pilgrims arrived in Saudi Arabia, with 1,289 of those having arrived at Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport and 4,565 others at Medina, Egypt’s Consul General in Jeddah, Hazem Ramadan, said.