'Bodies On The Ground': Pilgrims Recount Hajj Heat Horrors

The hajj, one of the five pillars of Islam, must be completed by all Muslims with the means at least once.

After years of failing to secure a hajj visa, Yasser finally concluded he had no choice but to perform the holy pilgrimage illegally, a move he has now come to regret.

While he survived the gruelling annual rites that unfolded in extreme heat again this year, he has not seen his wife since Sunday and fears she is among the more than 1,000 reported fatalities -- the majority unregistered Egyptians like himself.

"I have searched every single hospital in Mecca. She's not there," the 60-year-old retired engineer told AFP on Friday by phone from his hotel room, where he is reluctant to pack his wife's suitcase in hopes she'll be back to do it herself.