JEDDAH: Iran has canceled all flights to Saudi Arabia during Ramadan to minimize the spread of swine flu, an aviation official was quoted as saying by Jumhuri Eslami newspaper on Monday.
“In order to prevent the spread of swine flu, there will be no flights from Iran to Saudi Arabia during the holy month of Ramadan,” Reza Jafarzadeh, spokesman for the Iranian civil aviation organization, said.
Iran will bring back all its citizens currently in Saudi Arabia before the start of Ramadan, he said.
Iran has banned Umrah during Ramadan to control swine flu. The country has so far reported over 130 cases of the H1N1 flu strain, the majority of them among returning pilgrims.
A senior Saudi Haj official said the Iranian decision would not have an impact on the Ramadan Umrah season, which begins in about 10 days.
“The financial losses expected to result from the absence of Iranians during Ramadan Umrah may not exceed 5 percent on the sectors providing services to visitors and pilgrims in Makkah,” Chairman of the National Haj Committee Saad Al-Qurashi said.
Qurashi, who is also the chairman of the Umrah and Haj Committee in the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, does not believe the decision will have any impact on the number of Iranians coming for Haj in November. “The Iranian Haj missions have already signed contracts with a number of hotels in Makkah to accommodate Iranians during the coming pilgrimage season,” he told Arab News. “The Iranians do not usually come for Umrah during Ramadan. They come for Umrah during the months of Rajab and Shabaan,” Qurashi explained.
Minister of Haj Fouad Al-Farsy earlier said it was for individual countries to decide whether their citizens come to Saudi Arabia for Umrah or Haj.
“Saudi Arabia will not interfere with any decision taken by any country, for it is that country’s internal affair,” he said.
On Monday, Palestinian Health Minister Fathi Abu Moghli called on Palestinians to postpone Umrah this year.
Abu Moghli’s statement came after his ministry confirmed Sunday that five new cases of swine flu were discovered among people returning from Saudi Arabia after performing Umrah.
On Friday, senior Health Ministry official As’ad Al-Ramlawi confirmed that a 34-year-old man known to be carrying the virus died in a hospital in Ramallah after returning from Umrah. At least 85 cases of the virus have been detected in the Palestinian territories.
Meanwhile, a study published Monday quoted British doctors as saying Tamiflu should not be given to children suffering from flu because it does little good and causes vomiting and other side effects.
The report in the medical journal BMJ says Tamiflu can reduce the course of flu in children by up to a day and a half. But it says the drug has little or no effect on complications including asthma attacks, ear infections or bacterial infections.
The researchers from Oxford University say they aren’t sure how relevant their results are to the current swine flu pandemic. The World Health Organization recommends that Tamiflu should be reserved for flu sufferers who also are dealing with other medical conditions such as pregnancy, diabetes or respiratory problems.
— With input from Mohammed Mar’i and agencies
