At least 310 casualties have been reported in a stampede that occurred at the annual Hajj pilgrimage and injured 450 others on Thursday in Mina, located about two miles from the holy city of Mecca Saudi Arabia's civil defence directorate said, according to Al-Jazeera.
The stampede took place when two million pilgrims gathered to participate in one of the last rituals of the Hajj season known as "stoning the devil," during which they converge on Mina and throw stones at pillars which represent the devil, according to CNN.
The directorate also mentioned that about 4,000 personnel had been deployed at the scene of Thursday's stampede as well as more than 220 emergency and rescue teams. Those wounded in the chaos are being rushed to four hospitals in the area for treatment.
In a similar incident, 364 people lost their lives in a stampede during the stone-throwing ritual in Mina nine years ago.
This is the second tragedy to hit Mecca this month, after a crane collapsed at the holy city's Grand Mosque, killing 109 people, as HNGN previously reported.
Shocking stampede in #Makkah #Mecca my prayers with the victims May Allah be Merciful Aamin ! #مكة #الحج #HajjLive pic.twitter.com/Plk4wFtJc5
— Jameel جميل (@jameelsjam) September 24, 2015
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Yet another tragedy befall Pilgrims, 310 dead 420 injured due to stampede in #Mina #Mecca pilgrimage pic.twitter.com/Acy9Q8J1Gg
— Being Pashtun (@ibnSayyed) September 24, 2015
