When faith meets tragedy

It is a tragedy too deep for words. Forty-two Indian Umrah pilgrims, most of them from Hyderabad, were on a sacred journey from Mecca to Medina—destinations that have drawn the faithful for more than a millennium—when their lives were cut short in a horrific collision with a diesel tanker.

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What should have been a time of fulfilment and spiritual serenity turned, in a matter of minutes, into a scene of unimaginable devastation. Saudi Arabia has long been admired for its meticulous management of pilgrim traffic. Millions testify to the efficiency and care with which the kingdom handles the crowds year after year. Yet, as Khalil Gibran once wrote, “The sorrow for the dead is the only sorrow from which we refuse to be divorced.” Disasters, however rare, cannot always be predicted or prevented. And when they strike, their consequences are merciless.