Saudi Arabia expresses its condolences to Iraq after Karbala landslide
Saudi Arabia expresses its condolences to Iraq after Karbala landslide /node/2147916/saudi-arabia
Saudi Arabia expresses its condolences to Iraq after Karbala landslide
Iraqi rescue workers search for survivors trapped under the rubble of the Qattarat Al-Imam Ali shrine following a landslide in Karbala governorate on August 22, 2022. (AFP)
Saudi Arabia expresses its condolences to Iraq after Karbala landslide
The incident at Qattarat Al-Imam Ali shrine killed at least seven people, including a child
According to Iraq’s civil defense, the landslide hit the ceiling of the shrine
Updated 22 August 2022
Arab News
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia expressed on Monday its condolences to Iraq after a landslide caused a shrine in the governorate of Karbala to partially collapse.
The incident at Qattarat Al-Imam Ali shrine killed at least seven people, including a child, officials said Monday as rescuers continued to search for survivors.
According to Iraq’s civil defense, the landslide hit the ceiling of the shrine, which lies in a natural depression, causing it to cave in and dumping a torrent of rock and mud inside the structure. The entrance, walls and the minarets of the shrine, which was built on the place of a water source in the desert, remained standing.
The Kingdom’s foreign ministry offered its condolences to the families of those who died and to the Iraqi people. It also wished the injured a speedy recovery.
Saudi Hajj Ministry suspends Umrah firm, overseas agent over contract violations
Company failed to provide accommodation for a number of Umrah pilgrims, despite these services being documented in the contractual programs, ministry says
Updated 29 December 2025
Arab News
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Hajj and Umrah on Sunday announced the suspension of an Umrah company and its overseas agent for failing to provide accommodation services for pilgrims in line with approved contractual programs.
In a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency, the ministry said the company’s failure constitutes a clear violation of regulations governing services for Umrah pilgrims and visitors to the Two Holy Mosques.
It noted that a number of pilgrims arrived in the Kingdom without secured accommodation, despite these services being documented in the contractual programs.
This prompted immediate regulatory action against the company and its overseas agent under the established legal frameworks, the ministry said.
Pilgrims circumambulate the Holy Kaaba at the Grand Mosque in Makkah in this photo taken earlier this month. (SPA)
"The measures are intended to safeguard the rights of affected pilgrims, prevent a recurrence of such violations, and ensure the continued enhancement of service quality," it added.
Last June, the ministry suspended seven Umrah companies due to deficiencies in providing transport services to pilgrims.
In an earlier report quoting the Hajj Ministry and the General Authority for the Care of the Affairs of the Two Holy Mosques, SPA said more than 1.7 million Muslims from all over the world arrived in the Kingdom to perform Umrah during Jumada Al Akhira alone.
Also referred to as Jumada Al Thani, Jumada Al Akhira is the sixth month of the Islamic calendar. For Hijri year 1447, this sixth month ended on December 20, 2025 in the Gregorian calendar.
