Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
Claim
Bodies of the 1,000 people who died due to the extreme heat during the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia this year.
The archived version of the tweet can be seen here.
Over 1,300 Died During This Year’s Hajj
At least 1,301 people reportedly died during Hajj, mostly unauthorised pilgrims who walked long distances during this year’s intense heatwave, with temperatures at times exceeding 50°C.
Fact
Newschecker ran a reverse image search, which led us to the same photo featured in a news report published by Iran-based Tasnim News Agency, dated September 26, 2015. According to the report, at least 1,300 pilgrims were killed in a stampede outside the Muslim holy city of Mecca in the worst tragedy to strike the annual Muslim pilgrimage in a quarter-century.
A similar report with the same photo can be seen here, stating that the stampede occurred in Mina, near Mecca, which saw the Saudi officials putting the death toll at 717. “At least 717 people taking part in the Hajj pilgrimage have been killed in a stampede near the Islamic holy city of Mecca, officials in Saudi Arabia say. Another 863 people were injured in the incident at Mina, which occurred as two million pilgrims were taking part in the Hajj’s last major rite. It is the deadliest incident to occur during the pilgrimage in 25 years,” read a BBC report on the tragedy, dated September 24, 2015, which confirms that the viral image is not of the recent deaths owing to the heat wave.
Also Read: 2015 Photo From Mecca Stampede Falsely Linked To 2024 Hajj Deaths Due To Extreme Heat
Result: Missing Context
Sources
Tasnim News Agency report, September 26, 2015
Iqna report, September 25, 2015
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Pankaj Menon is a fact-checker based out of Delhi who enjoys ‘digital sleuthing’ and calling out misinformation. He has completed his MA in International Relations from Madras University and has worked with organisations like NDTV, Times Now and Deccan Chronicle online in the past.
