In The Name of Allah the Most Beneficent the Most Merciful
We are of Allah and to Him is our return.
The tragic incident of Mina left the Muslim world in grief and sorrow; it was a tragedy that left a large number of Hajj pilgrims, from differentMuslim countries including Iran, dead and many others wounded. There is no end to the tears of our eyes and the pain in our hearts at this most tragic and heart-rending incident. I would like to extend my deepest condolences to all Muslims of the world, including our Iranian brothers and sisters, and in particular those who were bereaved of their loved ones through this incident. I hope that their pure souls rest in peace by the Almighty Allah’s grace, and to be the companions of the martyrs of Karbala on the Resurrection Day. I also pray to Allah the Almighty to bestow peace and patience on the bereaved families and to grant them His greatest rewards in the Hereafter for their patience.
This great calamity requires the Muslim scholars, on the one hand, and the politicians and Muslim officials, on the other, to convene and to make decisions regarding the management of the Haramayn in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.
Those who are in charge of the management of the Hajj pilgrimage have perfectly demonstrated that they neither are qualified nor are they able to manage this great event, and it is feared that if they are entrusted with this task in the following years, such calamities might reoccur and turn the sacred Hajj pilgrimage in to a very horrible act of worship, hence, undermining the holiness of the Hajj rituals.
Now that the public opinion in the Muslim world is ready, this issue must be decided about and a qualified and competent council with enough experience has to be given the job of managing the Haramayn in Mecca and Medina, and the Saudis can also be a member of this council. Indeed, if this important issue is neglected, all will be responsible should, God forbid, similar tragedies ever happen again in the future.
Naser Makarem Shirazi
2015/9/25
