More than 300 Chinese Muslims departed Friday on a pilgrimage to Makkah, state media reported, the first group to leave on the Hajj to Saudi Arabia this year amid concerns about the spread of swine flu. The 332 pilgrims left the north-western province of Gansu on a chartered flight, the first of 12,700 Chinese Muslims due to make the pilgrimage, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Most of the pilgrims have been given vaccinations against A(H1N1) influenza amid a heightened global alert on the spread of the virus, Chang Qingliang, an official at the Islamic Association of China, was quoted as saying. Saudi Arabia says it is prepared to welcome some three million people to Mecca for the Hajj, and has asked pilgrims to be vaccinated against ordinary and A(H1N1) flu. According to the latest health ministry figures, China has recorded more than 42,000 cases of swine flu, with four deaths so far.