Egypt withdraws the licenses of 16 tourism companies due to the death of illegal Egyptian pilgrims

The Egyptian government announced the withdrawal of the licenses of 16 tourism companies due to the death of a number of Egyptian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia who did not obtain permits to perform Hajj this year. 

A Cabinet statement said on Saturday: “A number of 16 tourism companies were initially monitored for defrauding and deporting pilgrims irregularly, and did not provide any services to the pilgrims.”

The statement added: "The Prime Minister was instructed to quickly withdraw the licenses of these companies, refer those responsible to the Public Prosecution, and fine these companies for the benefit of the families of the pilgrims who caused their deaths."

Last Tuesday, two Arab diplomats reported that at least 323 Egyptian pilgrims had died during the Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, most of them for reasons related to high temperatures.

For his part, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi issued directives on June 20 to form a crisis cell , headed by Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, to follow up and manage the situation regarding the deaths of Egyptian pilgrims.

On the same day, Madbouly announced that there was a work cell to follow up and manage the crisis of the death of Egyptian pilgrims.