Mecca crane tragedy: King, Queen express sadness over incident

Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah and Raja Pemaisuri Agong Tuanku Hajah Haminah expressed sadness over the crane-collapse tragedy in Mecca yesterday, which left 10 Malaysian pilgrims injured.

Istana Negara in a statement here today said both of Their Majesties sympathised with all the pilgrims involved in the incident, especially those from Malaysia.

Earlier today, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Jamil Khir Baharom during a press conference at the Tabung Haji Complex in Kelana Jaya said 10 Malaysian pilgrims were injured and six others had yet to be traced.

However, the number missing was later to updated eight.

Jamil Khir said the seven men and three women who were injured were reported to be stable, and suffered injuries such as broken legs, and minor injuries to the head and ankle.

The incident occurred at 5pm on Friday, (10pm in Malaysia) at the Grand Mosque in Makkah.

According to latest reports, 107 people died in the tragedy while 238 were injured.

Meanwhile, in PEKAN, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, before beginning his speech during the Pekan Umno division delegates' meeting at the Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah Convention Hall today requested the delegates to offer prayers for the pilgrims who were killed in the incident.

"Together we also pray that the Malaysian pilgrims who were injured return home safely, and for the others, to complete their pilgrimage and return home to their families," he said.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in a note on his Twitter account also prayed for the safety of Malaysian pilgrims.

"I pray for Malaysian pilgrims in the Holy Land. My condolences to the families of those killed. Al-Fatihah," he said.

Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh and Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Rohani Abdul Karim also expressed sadness over the tragedy via Twitter.

Idris said: "My sympathies to the victims at the Grand Mosque, especially the Malaysians who were affected. May Allah protect us all. Insya-Allah."

Rohani, in her tweet, urged all Malaysians to pray for the safety and welfare of Malaysian pilgrims in the Holy Land.

Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein on his Facebook page said that he also hoped that all parties would come together to pray for the Malaysian pilgrims who were injured, so that they could recover quickly, and were able to resume and complete their pilgrimage.

In the meantime, the Foreign Ministry in a statement said that it, along with the Malaysian Consulate-General in Jeddah and TH, would continue to monitor developments in the aftermath of the tragedy.

"The Foreign Ministry wishes to express its sincere condolences to the family members of the victims who died in the tragedy," he said.