The delay in the start of the Hajj administrative affairs has reached four months, but Saudi officials have still not responded to Iran's requests. Some media outlets attribute the Iranian authorities' insistence on sending pilgrims to financial issues and interests.
After the attack on the Saudi embassy and consulate in Tehran and Mashhad, the country severed diplomatic relations with Iran, and the tense relations between the two countries became more critical.
The crisis has also affected Iranian pilgrims planning to travel to Saudi Arabia. The Deputy Minister of Guidance and Head of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization says that Saudi Arabia continues to refuse to respond to Iranian requests.
The Iranian Broadcasting Agency (IRNA) quoted Saeed Ohadi as saying on Thursday (April 28): "Up to this point, we are four months behind in terms of carrying out the administrative affairs of the Hajj operation compared to last year."
Visa problem
In the last days of Farvardin, a delegation from the Iranian Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization was scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia to negotiate with the country's officials to resolve some of the problems faced by Iranian pilgrims.
Owadi had recently told the state-run IRNA news agency: "The meeting on April 16 will take place after Saudi Arabia's three-month delay in signing the memorandum of understanding, and the final decision will definitely be made in this meeting, which will be held in the presence of relevant officials and experts."
Today's statements by the Deputy Minister of Guidance show that the Saudi government continues to evade responding to Iran's requests.
The head of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization said: "The Saudi Ministry of Hajj has not given any response regarding how to issue visas and how pilgrims can benefit from consular services in the event of possible problems, which are among our red lines."
4 months delay in planning
On April 20, Ali Jannati, the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, accused Saudi Arabia of obstructing the sending of Iranian pilgrims to Mecca, and listed examples of these obstructions.
According to reports, the necessity of applying for a visa in a third country and restrictions on some Iranian airlines in transporting pilgrims are among the issues mentioned by Jannati.
About three weeks ago, Saudi Arabia revoked the permission of Iranian Mahan Air planes to land at the country's airports or pass through its airspace due to what it called "non-compliance with air transport safety."
Owadi told the Iranian Broadcasting Corporation: "We need sufficient time to make the necessary arrangements for housing contracts, land and air transportation, logistics, and especially the contract related to the days of pilgrimage (the actions of Mina and Arafat), but unfortunately, given that the Saudi government has not responded so far, we have practically entered the red zone of the Hajj operation schedule."
Saudi Arabia's conditions for Iranian pilgrims
This delay comes at a time when Iranian pilgrims who are scheduled to perform Hajj Tamattu in 2016 must pay for their trip in two installments in the months of Farvardin and Ordibehesht.
The head of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization said: "We tried to resolve the issues and problems regarding this year's Tamattu through negotiations so that the Hajj pilgrimage can be held for Iranian pilgrims with dignity and respect, but the Saudi government has not responded to our conditions and red lines to date."
He stated that one of these "red lines" is ensuring the security of Iranian pilgrims, and that it is unlikely that Saudi Arabia will be willing to make a special commitment in this regard.
The mistreatment of some Iranian pilgrims at Jeddah airport and the killing of several hundred Iranians in two incidents in Mina and Mecca are among the cases for which Saudi Arabia has refused to accept responsibility and is ignoring Iran's requests regarding them.
Contrary to Ohadi's statements about "preserving the dignity and honor" of Iranian pilgrims, some media outlets have reported that the Saudi Minister of Hajj warned during a meeting with Iranian officials that pilgrims from this country should refrain from holding gatherings, chanting slogans, and praying loudly.
"Questionable Insistence of Officials"
The news site "Tabnak" wrote in a report on May 29: "In a situation where a way to obtain Saudi visas has not yet been found and the Saudis, in addition to their usual sabotage, are ignoring Iran's proposed solutions to solve the problem, the insistence of some officials on sending Iranian pilgrims to Hajj seems strange and even suspicious."
Referring to Owadi's statements that he once estimated the turnover of Iranian Hajj pilgrimage at 4 trillion tomans, Tabnak reported large investments in "very large projects in Saudi Arabia and the holy shrines" that would lead to economic failure if Iranian pilgrims stopped traveling.
At the end of this report, it is stated: "This is where the ambiguity is strengthened, whether the insistence of the officials of our country's Hajj Organization on sending Iranians to Tamattu, despite the numerous sabotages by the Saudis, is to prevent the loss of Hajj turnover and the failure of their economic plan?"
On May 26, after initial negotiations with officials from the Saudi Ministry of Hajj, the head of the Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization announced that the memorandum of understanding between the two countries has not yet been finalized and that the organization is awaiting the announcement of the Saudis' solution regarding how to issue visas to pilgrims.
Ali Jannati described the atmosphere prevailing in the Hajj negotiations as "cold and arbitrary," and Ohadi said that Saudi Arabia "unilaterally drafted" this year's Hajj memorandum of understanding.
