Iran stops Hajj due to Saudi 'sabotage'

Iran says it will not send pilgrims to Hajj this year because Saudi Arabia is refusing to cooperate on arrangements for Iranians to join the annual rituals in September, Press TV reports.

“Conditions are not prepared for conducting Hajj. We have lost the time, we made our utmost effort but the sabotage is coming from the Saudis,” the Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Ali Jannati, said at the meeting with the Grand Ayatollah Seyyed Abdul Karim Mousavi Ardebili.

An Iranian delegation held four days of talks in Saudi Arabia last month aimed at thrashing out a deal, but with Saudi diplomatic missions in Iran closed since January and Iranian flights to the kingdom halted they hit deadlock.

A massive stampede at last year's Hajj killed more than 2400 foreign pilgrims, including 464 Iranians.