At least 18 Bangladeshis died in Hajj stampede in Mina, 90 others are missing, says HAAB

President of Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (HAAB) Ibrahim Khalil has claimed at least 18 Bangladeshis were among around 800 dead in the stampede during the annual ritual of ‘stoning of the devil’ in Mina.

He claimed on Monday that at least 90 more Bangladeshis were missing.
 
Religious affairs ministry said family members had confirmed the death of 10 Bangladeshis in the Mina tragedy.
 
The ministry put the figure of missing at 98.
 
A day before the HAAB and ministry came out with their casualty figures, foreign ministry said Saudi Arabian authorities had identified three Bangladeshis among the dead.    
 
Of the three, one has been identified as Mohammad Shahidul Islam of Khulna’s Sonadanga. Identities of two others could not be known.
 
“We are certain about the death of 18.  But Bangladesh embassy in Saudi Arabia could confirm the death of 11. It could not provide any information about seven others,” Khalil told bdnews24.com.
 
He said the embassy could not confirm about seven others as it did not get their necessary documents.
 
Religious affairs ministry’s Joint Secretary Md Borhan Uddin told journalists at the Secretariat that identifying the victims had now become the biggest challenge.
 
“There is still no trace of 90 people. We came to know that 25 are undergoing treatment in various hospitals. Earlier, 30 others had also taken first aid,” HAAB president said.
 
Saudi government was not revealing anything about the actual cause of the accident, he said.
 
“Since Saudi government is not revealing anything, our mission too is tight-lipped due to diplomatic compulsions,” he added.