Muslim pilgrims rest after arriving at Muzdalifah before heading to Mina during the annual haj on June 27, 2023. - AFP
JAKARTA (The Jakarta Post/Asia News Network): An elderly Indonesian man who had been missing in Saudi Arabia for almost two weeks has been found dead at a hospital in Mecca, Indonesian haj officials have said, as they continue their search for two other missing pilgrims.
The head of the Indonesian Haj Management Committee’s (PPIH) pilgrim protection division, Harun Al Rasyid, said the body of 77-year-old Niron Sunar Suna had been found in the mortuary of Al-Noor Hospital in Mecca on Tuesday (July11) around 12pm local time.
“We confirmed that it was Niron after his wife personally checked the body,” Harun said in Mecca, as quoted by Kompas.id. Niron will be buried in Mecca, the PPIH said.
Kamsani, the wife of Niron, is also in the holy city for the haj. The couple was part of the Suraya pilgrim group, which embarked on the haj from East Java.
Niron was last seen on June 29 as his group was leaving their tents in Mina, some 8km east of Mecca, for the stoning of the devil ritual.
Once the group returned from the ritual, Niron’s wife reported his disappearance to group supervisor Hartono, who then reported it to the PPIH.
Indonesian haj officials in Mecca are still searching for two other pilgrims: 87-year-old Idun Rohim Zen from South Sumatra and 69-year-old Suharja Wardi Ardi from West Java. They were last seen at Mount Arafat, located some 20km to the southeast of Mecca, around the time pilgrims were performing wuquf, wherein pilgrims stand present at a hill located some 20km from Mecca
The PPIH’s search has focused on the area around Arafat and Mina, where most of the haj’s rituals are held, Kompas.com reported.
Saudi police have also been involved in the search. If the PPIH is unable to find the two remaining pilgrims by the time the Indonesian haj contingent makes its way back to the country in early August, the Indonesian Consulate General in Jeddah, the primary gateway for Indonesian pilgrims to Mecca, will take over the search.
This year’s haj is the first since the Covid-19 pandemic to be held at full capacity, with more than two million people from more than 160 countries making their way to Saudi Arabia.
Saudi authorities have also removed the 65-year-old age cap for pilgrims this year. Some 229,000 Indonesians are taking part in this year’s haj, including 67,000 pilgrims aged 65 or above.
