TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
74 Indonesian pilgrims still missing, govt sends DVI team to Jeddah
Orderly march: Muslim pilgrims walk in a tunnel on their way to cast stones at Jamarrat pillars, a ritual that symbolizes the stoning of Satan, during the annual haj in Mina, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Friday
Change Size
O
span class="inline inline-center">Orderly march: Muslim pilgrims walk in a tunnel on their way to cast stones at Jamarrat pillars, a ritual that symbolizes the stoning of Satan, during the annual haj in Mina, near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on Friday. (AP/Mosa'ab Elshamy)
The government is seeking to quicken the identification process of Indonesian victims in Thursday's stampede tragedy in Mina by sending the National Police's Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
"[The DVI team] is set to arrive on Friday in Jeddah," said Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin in Jeddah on Thursday as quoted by Antara news agency.
According to Lukman, the team will consist of eight to 11 people and will join the Saudi forensic team as soon as they arrive.
"According to Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi, the Saudi government has agreed to involve the Indonesian DVI team [in the identification process]," said Lukman.
According to the latest report, up to 74 Indonesian pilgrims have not yet returned to their lodgings since Thursday's tragedy.
On Friday, the Indonesian death toll reached 59 people, 55 of them were visiting for haj and four were residents of Mecca.
Five injured Indonesian pilgrims are still being treated at a Saudi hospital. (edn/kes)(++++)
