40 killed in bus accident in Saudi Arabia

Forty pilgrims have died and 10 injured when the bus they were travelling in collided with a truck in eastern Saudi Arabia.

Forty pilgrims have died and 10 injured when the bus they were travelling in collided with a truck in eastern Saudi Arabia.

The bus, from the United Arab Emirates, was carrying more than 60 pilgrims.

The agency said 37 Pakistanis, a Saudi, an Egyptian and a Syrian died after the bus caught fire on the road leading from the Saudi-Emirates border.

Meanwhile, the kingdom announced that the hajj, or the annual pilgrimage to Mecca, will begin on Feb. 20 and climax on Feb. 21. According to SPA, the Eid al-Adha, the most important holiday in the Islamic calendar, will be on February 22.

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The hajj to Mecca, birthplace of Islam's seventh century prophet Muhammad and home of Islam's holiest shrine, is one of the pillars of Islam. Muslims who are able-bodied and can afford the journey are obliged to do it at least once in their lifetime.

Saudi authorities are expecting up to 2.5 million people to perform the hajj this year, well above estimates by travel agents who had predicted fewer pilgrims because of the war against terrorism.

PA