Kurdish pilgrim dies in Mecca during Umrah

ERBIL — A Kurdish pilgrim from the Kurdistan Region died Friday in the Saudi city of Mecca while performing Umrah, according to the Kurdistan Region’s Umrah and Hajj Directorate.

A spokesperson for the directorate told 964media that Runak Ibrahim, 67, passed away on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. The spokesperson said she is the third Kurdish pilgrim from the Kurdistan Region to die in Mecca since the beginning of the year.

Umrah is a pilgrimage to Mecca that can be performed at any time of year and is distinct from the Hajj, which is obligatory for Muslims once in their lifetime and must be carried out during specific dates in the Islamic calendar.

The death follows another case reported last week. Mahmoud Omar, a 60-year-old pilgrim from Erbil, died while performing Umrah in Saudi Arabia several days after arriving in the kingdom, his family told 964media. Omar was the second Kurdish pilgrim to die in Saudi Arabia in the first two weeks of 2026.

According to the Kurdistan Region’s Hajj and Umrah Directorate, 14 Kurdish pilgrims died in Saudi Arabia during 2025.

The directorate has already announced the results of the draw for the 2026 Hajj season, naming 3,901 confirmed pilgrims and 1,950 alternates, for a total of 5,851 people. Of these, 113 slots were allocated to families of martyrs, with an additional 113 listed as alternates.

Saudi Arabia determines annual Hajj quotas based on the size of each country’s Muslim population, typically allocating about 1,000 pilgrims per 1 million Muslims. Iraq’s quota in recent years has ranged between 34,000 and 40,000 pilgrims, distributed among the governorates, including the Kurdistan Region.