Filipina dies of heatstroke during hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia

Muslim pilgrims pray around the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest shrine, at the Grand Mosque in the holy city of Mecca on June 18, 2024 at the end of the annual hajj pilgrimage. FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse

MANILA, Philippines — A Filipina based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, who was on a hajj pilgrimage, died of heatstroke, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Friday.

According to DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega, the Filipina, who was unnamed, was buried in Saudi Arabia following Islamic practices.

“So far, one female Riyadh-based Filipino pilgrim died of natural causes (heatstroke) in Makkah.  She has been buried in Saudi Arabia in accordance with Islamic practice,” de Vega said in a text message to Inquirer.net.

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Hajj, one of the pillars of Islam, is a pilgrimage to Mecca that Muslims who are physically and financially capable must make at least once in their lives.

According to de Vega, there are an estimated 5,100 Filipino Muslims who made the pilgrimage this year.

READ: Loved ones search for missing as hajj death toll passes 900

He added that the DFA sent a team in Saudi Arabia to assist the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh in serving the Filipino pilgrims.