The number of those killed in Saudi Arabia stampede during the annual Hajj rituals has reached 717 and it is expected to rise, Al Jazeera TV reported. More than 860 others were injured.
The Hajj pilgrimage began on Tuesday, September 22nd in Mecca and a large part of the customs were being carried out on the third day, being Thursday, including sacrificing sheep and hurling stone at the symbol of the Devil.
 

The crush took place on Street 204 of the camp city at Mina, a few kilometres east of Mecca, where pilgrims stay for several days during the climax of the haj.
It was one of the worst incidents to hit the haj in nearly a decade.
“Work is underway to separate large groups of people and direct pilgrims to alternative routes,” the Saudi Civil Defence said on its Twitter account.
Helicopters were flying over the area and the sirens of dozens of ambulances could be heard, AFP reporters said.
Rescue operations were under way, the service said on Twitter, after the stampede in Mina near Mecca, where hundreds of thousands of pilgrims were taking part in the last major rite of the haj.