The Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued guidelines for Hajj pilgrims in the context of swine flu. According to a private news channel, the Director Hajj Rao Shakil Ahmed Khan revealed that the guideline requires intending pilgrims to be vaccinated against seasonal influenza before their departure to the KSA, with a certificate as a proof for vaccination.
It also requires the pilgrims that they are administered within a period not exceeding two weeks prior to their departure. If the vaccine for the H1N1 virus is also made available before the pilgrimage, pilgrims are required to get the vaccination. It is also a pre-condition that a pilgrim's country of origin should run an awareness programme pertaining to swine flu.
Meanwhile, the Saudi authorities have asked people with chronic diseases, pregnant women, those aged above 65 and children under 12 to abstain from performing Hajj this year. The World Health Organisation has said the current strain of the H1N1 flu virus posed no serious health risk. More than two million pilgrims from around the world will head to the kingdom to perform the Hajj.
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