Turkish pilgrims injured in Hajj stampede arrive in Ankara


Dozens of Turkish pilgrims injured in two disasters during this year's Hajj returned to Turkey on Monday.The 24 casualties arrived at a military airport in Ankara accompanied by 12 medical teams aboard a military Hercules C-130 aircraft following a five-hour flight from Saudi Arabia.They were transferred to hospitals around Turkey by ambulance for further treatment, according to a health ministry official.At least 769 pilgrims lost their lives in a stampede at Mina as they returned from or headed to a ritual 5 kilometers (3 miles) east of Mecca. The incident was the deadliest Hajj disaster in 25 years.Three Turkish nationals are among the dead and another five Turks remain missing, according to a Turkish health ministry source.On Sept. 11, 107 people were killed by a crane that collapsed at the Grand Mosque in Mecca.It was unclear how many of the repatriated Turks were injured in either incident or the extent of their injuries.Around 2 million Muslims from around the world participated in this year's Hajj, the pilgrimage that is one of the five pillars of Islam and which every able-bodied Muslim must perform at least once.