Makkah: Muslims pilgrims from around the world are pouring into the holy city of Makkah in Saudi Arabia, undeterred by the spread of the MERS virus which has killed 284 people in the kingdom.
The mysterious Middle East Respiratory Syndrome is considered a deadlier but less transmissible cousin of the SARS virus that appeared in Asia in 2003 and infected 8,273 people, nine percent of whom died. MERS first appeared in Saudi Arabia in April 2012, and the kingdom remains the worst-hit country, accounting for the bulk of a global death toll.
But the faithful who dream of visiting the holy shrines in Makkah and Madinah at least once in their lives continue to pour into Makkah to perform the lesser umrah pilgrimage. “We have received warnings by authorities in our country about MERS and were informed of the importance of taking precautions,” said 45-year-old Abdullah, a pilgrim from Malaysia.
Wearing a mask, Abdullah said he applies disinfectants as he enters the Grand Mosque in Makkah. “God will protect me,” he said. More pilgrims are expected to arrive with the approach of the fasting month of Ramadan, which starts later this month, and sees hundreds of thousands descend on Makkah for umrah. But numbers will rocket when pilgrims arrive for Haj, the largest annual religious gathering worldwide, which takes place this year in October.
Local authorities in Makkah are distributing leaflets and brochures containing advice on hygiene and measures to prevent the risk of infection by the coronavirus.
Tunisian pilgrim, Safia bin Mohammed shrugged off the fears of MERS. “I am not afraid of the coronavirus,” she said, pointing out that it is not always easy to get a visa to perform pilgrimage.
“It was not easy to come here, so I couldn’t have postponed my pilgrimage,” said the 56-year-old woman, insisting she was “complying with the medical precautions.”
In a preemptive measure to avoid a potential importation of the virus, Tunisian authorities have advised nationals to postpone their plans for pilgrimage this year. The virus has been imported to more than a dozen other countries.
All of those cases relate to people who became ill while in the Middle East, with some involving pilgrims travelling to the Muslim holy sites in western Saudi Arabia.
Last year, five million pilgrims visited the kingdom for umrah and Haj. This year, the number of umrah pilgrims has reached 4.8 million since the start of the lunar Muslim calendar in October, according to official statistics.
Fears mounted in April when several cases of infection were registered in the western city of Jeddah after MERS had been largely confined to Eastern Province, where it first appeared in April 2012. The port city of Jeddah, which lies 80km north of Makkah, is the main entry point for pilgrims.
But Saudi Arabia’s Haj ministry has not yet taken any special measures related to MERS.
The World Health Organisation has also so far not advised special screening at points of entry, nor does it currently recommend any travel or trade restrictions, including for the pilgrimage.
AFP
