Hajj stampede kills 250 Muslim pilgrims

NEARLY 250 Muslim worshipers died in a hajj stampede yesterday during the annual stoning of Satan ritual in one of the deadliest tragedies at the notoriously perilous ceremony.

The stampede, during a peak event of the annual Muslim pilgrimage, or hajj, lasted about a half-hour, Saudi officials said. There were 244 dead and hundreds of other worshippers injured, some critically, Hajj Minister Iyad Madani said.

"All precautions were taken to prevent such an incident, but this is God's will. Caution isn't stronger than fate," Madani said.