Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article6721743.ece
From Times Online
July 21, 2009
Swine flu may force Muslims to abandon Haj pilgrimage to Mecca
Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent
The annual Haj pilgrimage to Mecca could be under threat because of swine flu.
Britain today joined a growing list of countries in the MIddle East and Africa to issue advice to Muslim pilgrims not to travel to Saudi Arabia if they are elderly, pregnant, very young or have a long-term medical condition that may leave them more vulnerable to the disease.
The advice, issued by the UK?s Association of British Hujjaj (Pilgrims), follows a recommendation by Saudi health officials that anyone travelling to Mecca or Medina should receive the seasonal flu vaccine at least two weeks before their visit.
The Saudi authorities also said that pregnant women, children, chronically ill and elderly people should skip the Haj this year.
Quarantine facilities have been set up in Saudi airports and millions of vaccine doses have been pre-ordered.
The Association of British Hujjaj said that Saudi Arabia?s warning had ?sent a shock wave? through Britain?s Muslim community.
The association?s health experts warned: ?British pilgrims have always been at high risk of infections due to the crowded conditions at ceremonies, accommodation sites and on public transport. Therefore pilgrims must follow the guidelines issued by the authorities and they should be vaccinated against the swine flu virus once this vaccine is available at least two weeks before their departure to perform pilgrimage.?
In a statement today the association said: ?Take the swine flu threat seriously, be safe than sorry and contact your doctor before travelling.?
Fears of an epidemic among pilgrims were raised after two Iranians returned from Mecca with the H1N1 virus.
Egypt today issued a similar warning to vulnerable groups to stay at home, after a woman returning from Saudi Arabia became the first Egyptian to die from swine flu. The woman, who suffered from a pre-existing heart ailment due to rheumatic fever, had travelled to Saudi Arabia for the minor umra pilgrimage which can be undertaken all year round, and developed flu symptoms on July 11.
Peak numbers make the umra pilgrimage during the holy month of Ramadan, which this year is due to begin in late August.
Egypt's health ministry warned the elderly, pregnant women, children and those suffering from chronic illness not to perform the haj, according to Egypt?s official news agency.
Egypt?s top cleric or mufti, Sheikh Ali Gomaa, has said he would be guided by the World Health Organisation (on whether to issue a fatwa or decree barring all Egyptians from making the pilgrimage.
Up to three million Muslims are expected in Saudi Arabia over the next five months on pilgrimages to the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The largest number are expected in Mecca for the main Haj pilgrimage in November and December this year.
A number of other Middle East and African countries have already issued swine flu warnings.
Earlier this month Oman said that elderly Muslims and pregnant women should not undertake the Haj.
Tunisia has gone further, suspending the umra pilgrimages, but has reserved judgement on whether the main Haj should take place.
In Lebanon, Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Hussain Fadlallah, the country?s most influential Shia cleric, issued a fatwa on Sunday saying that those with serious concerns about contracting the virus while performing the annual Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia could stay away this year.
But he also said that the entire pilgrimage should not be cancelled under any circumstances because it is a ?divine duty?.
Arab health ministers are due to meet in Cairo tomorrow to coordinate arrangements and precautions to be taken during the pilgrimage season.
The World Health Organisation said on Friday that the virus was moving around the globe at ?unprecedented speed?. The organisation would no longer keep a global tally of flu cases, instead tracking the pandemic through newly affected territories.
Swine flu infection rates in the Middle East are low compared with the US and the UK, both countries that send thousands of pilgrims on Haj each year, with 25,000 expected to travel from Britain alone.
From Times Online
July 21, 2009
Swine flu may force Muslims to abandon Haj pilgrimage to Mecca
Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent
The annual Haj pilgrimage to Mecca could be under threat because of swine flu.
Britain today joined a growing list of countries in the MIddle East and Africa to issue advice to Muslim pilgrims not to travel to Saudi Arabia if they are elderly, pregnant, very young or have a long-term medical condition that may leave them more vulnerable to the disease.
The advice, issued by the UK?s Association of British Hujjaj (Pilgrims), follows a recommendation by Saudi health officials that anyone travelling to Mecca or Medina should receive the seasonal flu vaccine at least two weeks before their visit.
The Saudi authorities also said that pregnant women, children, chronically ill and elderly people should skip the Haj this year.
Quarantine facilities have been set up in Saudi airports and millions of vaccine doses have been pre-ordered.
The Association of British Hujjaj said that Saudi Arabia?s warning had ?sent a shock wave? through Britain?s Muslim community.
The association?s health experts warned: ?British pilgrims have always been at high risk of infections due to the crowded conditions at ceremonies, accommodation sites and on public transport. Therefore pilgrims must follow the guidelines issued by the authorities and they should be vaccinated against the swine flu virus once this vaccine is available at least two weeks before their departure to perform pilgrimage.?
In a statement today the association said: ?Take the swine flu threat seriously, be safe than sorry and contact your doctor before travelling.?
Fears of an epidemic among pilgrims were raised after two Iranians returned from Mecca with the H1N1 virus.
Egypt today issued a similar warning to vulnerable groups to stay at home, after a woman returning from Saudi Arabia became the first Egyptian to die from swine flu. The woman, who suffered from a pre-existing heart ailment due to rheumatic fever, had travelled to Saudi Arabia for the minor umra pilgrimage which can be undertaken all year round, and developed flu symptoms on July 11.
Peak numbers make the umra pilgrimage during the holy month of Ramadan, which this year is due to begin in late August.
Egypt's health ministry warned the elderly, pregnant women, children and those suffering from chronic illness not to perform the haj, according to Egypt?s official news agency.
Egypt?s top cleric or mufti, Sheikh Ali Gomaa, has said he would be guided by the World Health Organisation (on whether to issue a fatwa or decree barring all Egyptians from making the pilgrimage.
Up to three million Muslims are expected in Saudi Arabia over the next five months on pilgrimages to the Muslim holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The largest number are expected in Mecca for the main Haj pilgrimage in November and December this year.
A number of other Middle East and African countries have already issued swine flu warnings.
Earlier this month Oman said that elderly Muslims and pregnant women should not undertake the Haj.
Tunisia has gone further, suspending the umra pilgrimages, but has reserved judgement on whether the main Haj should take place.
In Lebanon, Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Hussain Fadlallah, the country?s most influential Shia cleric, issued a fatwa on Sunday saying that those with serious concerns about contracting the virus while performing the annual Haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia could stay away this year.
But he also said that the entire pilgrimage should not be cancelled under any circumstances because it is a ?divine duty?.
Arab health ministers are due to meet in Cairo tomorrow to coordinate arrangements and precautions to be taken during the pilgrimage season.
The World Health Organisation said on Friday that the virus was moving around the globe at ?unprecedented speed?. The organisation would no longer keep a global tally of flu cases, instead tracking the pandemic through newly affected territories.
Swine flu infection rates in the Middle East are low compared with the US and the UK, both countries that send thousands of pilgrims on Haj each year, with 25,000 expected to travel from Britain alone.