The Saudi government has confirmed that this year the Hajj may be canceled and has asked all Hajj companies not to make any necessary arrangements.
In the last week of February, Saudi Arabia halted Umrah trips to the holy cities of Makkah and Madina due to the coronavirus scare.
Despite the fact that Kingdom took a series of stringent precautionary measures to keep the COVID-19 at bay, Saudi Arabia’s Health Ministry reported 67 new cases of coronavirus taking the total number of infections in the Kingdom up to 238.
The viral ailment has claimed hundreds of lives among thousands of infections around the world since December when it broke out in China, where the virus originated.
Though the Kingdom said the Umrah suspension is temporary and “subject to regular review”, Muslims are increasingly apprehensive about the prospect of doing Hajj and fear that the hajj pilgrimage would be impacted.
According to reports, some Egyptian lawmakers have called for cancelling this year’s annual Hajj season, citing fears of a pandemic of the coronavirus.
The unprecedented moves have left thousands of Muslim pilgrims all over the world, raising uncertainty over the annual hajj to Mecca scheduled for the end of July 2020.
The Holy sites, which draw millions of pilgrims every year, are a potential source of contagion but also a key revenue earner and a pillar of political legitimacy for Saudi rulers.
SOURCE: opr.news