After a stampede near the holy city of Mecca during the hajj pilgrimage that left more than 700 people dead, including 131 Iranians, officials and clerics from Iran are calling for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to manage the hajj.

Ayatollah Mohammad Emami Kashani rejected statements by Saudi Arabian officials blaming the pilgrims for not following directions. At Tehran’s Friday prayers on Sept. 25, he said, “They say the pilgrims themselves were disorderly and that the weather was hot [but] the world will not accept it, and this is a lie. Everyone knows the whole story, that it was a lack of worthy management of hajj and they closed the paths and brought the situation to this.”

Kashani continued, “Hajj is not only related to Saudi Arabia, but is connected to all countries. The ones now who have been martyred are from all Islamic countries, not only from Saudi Arabia.” Kashani suggested that these issues be raised at the next OIC meeting and “the management of hajj be put under this organization.”

According to most accounts, the stampede was caused when pilgrims who were traveling to and away from the stone-throwing ritual collided, causing a panic. This is not the first time this has happened, but it is the deadliest stampede in 25 years. While Saudi Arabia has ordered an investigation and has suggested that either African pilgrims or the hot weather played a role, Iranian officials, based on statements of some pilgrims, have blamed the stampede on gates being closed to allow for passage of specific cars.