Saudi Arabia is contemplating barring abroad pilgrims from the annual haj for the second 12 months working as COVID-19 instances rise globally and worries develop concerning the emergence of latest variants, two sources acquainted with the matter mentioned on Wednesday.
Such a transfer would prohibit the pilgrimage to Mecca, a as soon as in a lifetime obligation for each able-bodied Muslim who can afford it, to Saudi nationals and residents of the dominion who had been vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 not less than months previous to attending.
While discussions a couple of doable ban have taken place, there was no last determination on whether or not to pursue it, they mentioned.
Before the pandemic enforced social distancing globally, some 2.5 million pilgrims used to go to the holiest websites of Islam in Mecca and Medina for the week-long haj, and the lesser, year-round umrah pilgrimage, which altogether earned the dominion about $12 billion a 12 months, based on official information.
As a part of financial reform plans pursued by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the dominion hoped to lift the variety of umrah and haj pilgrims to fifteen million and 5 million respectively by 2020, and aimed to double the umrah quantity once more to 30 million by 2030. It goals to earn 50 billion riyals ($13.32 billion) of revenues from the haj alone by 2030.
Two sources acquainted with the matter mentioned authorities have suspended earlier plans to host pilgrims from abroad, and can solely enable home pilgrims who’ve been vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 not less than six months earlier than the pilgrimage.
Restrictions can be utilized on the age of contributors as properly, one of many sources mentioned.
A second supply mentioned the plans had been initially to permit some numbers of vaccinated pilgrims from overseas, however confusion over varieties of vaccines, their efficacy and the emergence of latest variants has pushed officers to rethink.
The authorities media workplace didn’t reply to a request for remark.
Saudi Arabia, which stakes its popularity on its guardianship of Islam’s holiest websites in Mecca and Medina, barred foreigners from the haj final 12 months as a result of pandemic for the primary time within the kingdom’s trendy historical past, permitting it solely to a restricted variety of Saudi residents and residents.
COVID-19 infections are nonetheless rising in 35 international locations globally. There have been not less than 153,508,000 reported infections and three,351,000 reported deaths brought on by the brand new coronavirus thus far.
India leads the world within the every day common variety of new deaths reported, accounting for one in each 4 deaths reported worldwide every day.
Crowds of hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from all over the world may very well be a hotbed for virus transmission, and prior to now some worshippers have returned to their international locations with respiratory and different ailments.
In February, the federal government suspended entry to the dominion from 20 international locations, except for diplomats, Saudi residents, medical practitioners and their households, to assist curb the unfold of the brand new coronavirus.
The ban, which continues to be in place up to now, contains folks arriving from the United Arab Emirates, Germany, the United States, Britain, South Africa, France, Egypt, Lebanon, India and Pakistan.
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