Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended on Friday Saudi Arabia in the face of growing international criticism, particularly by Iran, over deaths of more than 700 people at the Hajj pilgrimage, saying critics should recognize difficulties of managing such a massive event. "There have been some negative approaches to this [the Hajj deaths]. Some have blamed management, some have said there were problems with the organization. I don't think such approaches are appropriate," Erdogan told reporters in İstanbul. More that 700 people suffocated or were trampled to death on Thursday when two waves of pilgrims collided in the deadliest disaster to strike the annual pilgrimage in a quarter- century.
