MAKKAH: Saad Al-Qurashi, chairman of the National Haj & Umrah Committee, said a high-level panel would be set up to deal with swine flu during the Umrah and Haj seasons.
Speaking to Arab News, he said the new panel would include representatives from the ministries of Haj and Health, the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Makkah municipality, the Red Crescent Society and the Civil Defense.
The panel will start distributing surgical masks among Umrah pilgrims in the central region of Makkah during Ramadan as well as among Haj pilgrims from the middle of Dul Qaada (beginning of November).
“The panel will also hold specialized workshops to enlighten workers on the symptoms of swine flu and provide them with the latest information on the disease and measures to be taken to combat the H1N1 virus,” Al-Qurashi said.
He said the Ministry of Commerce has agreed to establish in Makkah the headquarters of the national Haj and Umrah Committee, which includes representatives from the Haj and Umrah committees at the Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah chambers.
He said the committee's crisis management panel would support over 3,000 Haj and Umrah companies and establishments in Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah to deal with any unforeseen emergency situation. These companies have a total of 600,000 employees.
“This panel has got a lot of expertise in dealing with crises, especially contagious diseases such as swine flu,” he explained. He said a number of related agencies have expressed their readiness to cooperate with the crisis management panel.
“The crisis panel is now coordinating with the Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry to establish a permanent department at the chamber to deal with any crisis related to Haj and Umrah services,” he said.
As chairman of the committee, he said he would visit a number of countries that suspended issuance of Umrah visas to their pilgrims for fear of swine flu to inform them about the measures taken by the Kingdom to prevent the spread of the disease.
“Some countries took the decision influenced by emotion. These countries allow some pilgrims to travel and prevent others,” he added.
