President Hassan Rouhani was to cut short his visit to New York and return home to attend the funeral of the Iranian victims of the recent crush disaster in Saudi Arabia.
The president, who was in New York for the 70th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, will leave for Tehran after delivering a speech at the UNGA on Monday, said Parviz Esmaeili, the president’s deputy chief of staff, Press TV reported.
The latest figures released by Iran’s Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization show that at least 220 Iranian pilgrims lost their lives in the incident during the Hajj rituals in Mina near Mecca on September 24. Over 25 Iranians are currently hospitalized and almost 250 others are still unaccounted for.
The first batch of the bodies of the Iranian victims is to be transferred to Iran on Tuesday, said Esmaeili.
“Therefore, the president, having canceled a number of his programs and planned meetings at the United Nations, will leave New York Monday afternoon [local time].”
