IN an unprecedented move that will likely have massive repercussions the world over, Saudi Arabia has imposed a temporary ban on all umrah (minor hajj) pilgrims to keep the county safe from the coronavirus.
Umrah, which refers to the Islamic pilgrimage to Makkah that can be undertaken at any time of year, attracts millions of devout Muslims from all over the globe each year.
According to Arab News, the temporary ban was one of several precautionary restrictions announced on Thursday as health authorities in the country observed the latest developments of the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.
There was no clarity over how the move would affect the annual hajj pilgrimage due to start in late July.
Some 2.5 million faithful travelled to Saudi Arabia from across the world to take part in last year’s hajj – one of the five pillars of Islam.
The event is a key rite of passage for Muslims and a massive logistical challenge for Saudi authorities, with colossal crowds cramming into relatively small holy sites.
In addition to umrah pilgrims, the Saudi government will also impose a similar ban on tourist visa holders from “countries judged to pose a particularly high risk of spreading the virus.”
The country welcomes nearly seven million umrah pilgrims every year, most of whom arrive at airports in Jeddah and Madinah.
Data from the Saudi Hajj and Umrah Ministry show that as of December 2019, Indonesia contributed the second highest number of umrah pilgrims with 443,879 arrivals, just below Pakistan with 495,270.
An Indonesian Religious Affairs Ministry official, Ubaidillah Amin Moch, said requests for umrah visas and other visas to Saudi Arabia would be stopped as of Thursday and that a number of pilgrims had been held up at the airport due to the new restrictions.
“We respect Saudi Arabia’s decision as part of an effort to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, and we ask all Indonesian umrah pilgrims to be patient while we wait for the Saudi government to reopen access,” he said in a statement on Thursday.
“We ask the management of umrah travel agencies to be proactive in conveying this information to the pilgrims,” he added, saying that the ministry was awaiting further information from the Saudi government.
An Indonesian lawmaker, Ace Hasan Syadzily, responded to the news of the umrah suspension, saying that he was still awaiting an official confirmation from Saudi authorities.
“If such a policy is indeed in effect, we are honestly shocked,” Syadzily said on Thursday, adding that he had expected the Saudi administration to have been more prepared in anticipating the viral outbreak, given that the country had also faced a similar challenge in 2013.
“We are, of course, thinking about umrah pilgrims who have been scheduled to depart soon for the country. They surely must have been looking forward to their departure, in accordance with the original schedule as organised by their travel agencies,” the lawmaker said.
He went on to say that he expected further explanation from Saudi officials regarding the duration of the ban, as well as whether the Saudi administration has recorded any confirmed coronavirus cases among umrah pilgrims.
The move is believed to raise questions over the annual hajj.
Saudi Arabia, which so far has reported no cases of the virus but has expressed alarm over its spread in neighbouring countries, said the suspensions were temporary.
It provided no timeframe for when they will be lifted.
“The kingdom’s government has decided to take the following precautions: suspending entry to the kingdom for the purpose of umrah and visit to the Prophet’s mosque temporarily,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
The move comes as Gulf countries implement a raft of measures, including flight suspensions and school closures, to curb the spread of the disease from people returning from pilgrimages to Iran.
Even as the number of fresh coronavirus cases declines at the epicenter of the disease in China, there has been a sudden increase across the Middle East.
Since its outbreak, the United Arab Emirates has reported 13 coronavirus cases, Kuwait has recorded 43, Bahrain has 33 and Oman is at four cases.
Iran has emerged as a major hotspot in the region, with 19 fatalities from 139 infections – the highest death toll outside China, where COVID-19 originated.
While no cases have been reported in Saudi Arabia, one citizen is reported to be infected in Kuwait along with four Saudi women in Bahrain – all of whom had returned from Iran.
“This move by Saudi Arabia is unprecedented. The concern for Saudi authorities would be Ramadan, which starts at the end of April, and hajj afterwards, should the coronavirus become a pandemic,” founder of London-based risk consultancy Cornerstone Global Associates, Ghanem Nuseibeh, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The holy fasting month of Ramadan is considered a favourable period by Muslim pilgrims to perform the umrah.
Saudi Arabia’s custodianship of Makkah and Madinah – Islam’s two holiest sites – is seen as the kingdom’s most powerful source of political legitimacy.
The pilgrimage forms a crucial source of revenue for the government, which hopes to welcome 30 million pilgrims annually to the kingdom by 2030.
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