JEDDAH: Undersecretary at the Ministry of Haj Ali Balkhayr has said his ministry is carefully watching outbreaks of infectious diseases, such as swine flu, in various parts of the world.
The ministry is collaborating with the Ministry of Health to stop the entry of any pilgrim carrying dangerous infections, Balkhayr said.
“Umrah activities have never been disrupted by infectious diseases and none of the scheduled pilgrim trips have been canceled because of swine flu,” he added.
According to Saad Al-Qurashi, head of the National Committee for Haj and Umrah, no case of swine flu has been detected among Umrah pilgrims since the virus originated in Mexico two months ago.
“No pilgrim carrying infectious diseases is allowed to enter the Kingdom because the Saudi missions abroad insist on strict health precautions while issuing Umrah visas,” Al-Qurashi said.
The Health Ministry said a Saudi student who was diagnosed with swine flu left hospital on Wednesday “in a good state of health.” The student, the second confirmed swine flu case in the Kingdom, arrived in Jeddah from Washington on Sunday and was then flown to Dammam where he underwent treatment.
The first case of swine flu in the Kingdom was reported on June 3. A Filipino nurse at King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh was diagnosed with H1N1 infection about a week after she returned from vacation in the Philippines.
The precautionary measures taken by Saudi authorities at its land, sea and air entry points are very effective, Egyptian Consul General in Jeddah Ali Al-Ashiri said.
The consul general added that the preparations for the increased flow of Umrah pilgrims in the months of Rajab (June-July) and Ramadan (August-September) would include awareness campaigns to pilgrims about the symptoms of swine flu and precautionary measures including wearing masks at crowded places and adherence to health regulations laid down by the Saudi authorities.
The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and tour operators that organize Umrah trips will jointly organize the campaigns, he said. He said the Kingdom’s plan to counter the spread of swine flu during the pilgrimage seasons won the approval of World Health Organization.
“It is a known fact that the Kingdom employs effective programs to monitor and contain contagious diseases during the seasons of pilgrimage,” said Al-Ashiri. “In the past the Kingdom successfully handled dangerous diseases, such as SARS and Rift Valley Fever,” said the diplomat.
He said Egypt has made health insurance coverage mandatory for all pilgrims so that they would not have any problem in getting treatment in Saudi hospitals.
He said the Egyptian Health Ministry was planning to open health registers for each pilgrim and all pilgrims would undergo health checkups before they leave for the holy cities.
