Somali pilgrims die in Saudi Arabia, some missing - minister

MOGADISHU, Somalia - At least four Somali pilgrims died in Saudi Arabia during this year's Hajj, Religious and Endowment Minister Mukhtar Robow said in a statement, adding that some other 60 got ill but most of them recovered in time after receiving medical care.

Every year, several Muslim faithfuls travel to Mecca in Saudi Arabia and other cities for Hajj festivals, with millions gracing the event. In most cases, pilgrims die due to stampede in the area of workship due to congestions, and host nations have recently tried to minimize these tragedies.

While speaking from the Holy City of Makkah al-Mukarama, Robow, who denounced Al-Shabaab a few years ago having served as deputy leader, said Somali pilgrims were undergoing a number of challenges including delay in serving lunch which have since been resolved.

Despite the hurdles, he added, a good number of the people of Somalia participated in this year's Haji festivals with a total of 11,650 people travelling outside the country. There were Somalis from other nations mostly refugees who attended the event, he added.

In recent months, Somalia has heavily invested in religion as a strategy to fight recruitment of Al-Shabaab militants, with ideological approach being one of the sourced practice by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to defeat the militants. Religious scholars have been working closely with the government to preach against violent extremism.

The government of Somalia has insisted that the clergy is important in fighting Al-Shabaab. In his cabinet, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud deliberately picked Mukhtar Robow, the former Al-Shabaab leader, as the minister of religious endowment to help in spreading the defection message across the country.

Al-Shabaab militants have been fighting to topple the fragile UN-backed federal government of Somalia for the last 16 years but concerted effort from security forces have kept the militants at bay. However, Al-Shabaab still controls large swathes of rural central and southern Somalia.

GAROWE ONLINE