Saudi's hajj chief blames African pilgrims for stampede that killed 700

The head of the committee which oversees the hajj pilgrimage has sparked outrage by blaming pilgrims of 'African nationalities' for the stampede which killed more than 700 people.

In what was the worst disaster in a quarter-century to strike the annual event, 769 people died when the stampede broke out in Mina, about three miles from Mecca, during the symbolic stoning of the devil ritual.

The inflammatory comments come as authorities were heavily criticised for a perceived lapse in safety measures at what is one of the world's largest pilgrimages.The comment provoked a storm of condemnation, with critics describing it as 'more obscene than racism' while others said authorities should focus on determining what went wrong, rather than blaming ethnic groups.

Meanwhile, Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh has told Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef: 'You are not responsible for what happened', the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

He added: 'As for the things that humans cannot control, you are not blamed for them. Fate and destiny are inevitable.'

Mohammed chairs the Saudi hajj committee and has ordered an investigation into Thursday's stampede during a symbolic stoning of the devil ritual by hundreds of thousands of pilgrims at Jamarat Bridge in Mina, just outside the holy city of Mecca.

May their soul rest in peace.

Culled from Daily mail