Saudi Arabia Prepares to Welcome 1.5 Million for Hajj amid Ebola, Iran Fears

The government of Saudi Arabia reassured visitors on Friday that it is prepared to screen for and otherwise address any public health threats during the upcoming Hajj season, responding to growing international concern about the spread of Ebola and hantavirus. The hajj is the Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city in the religion, which Muslims are mandated to make, if possible, once in their lifetimes. Saudi Arabia typically welcomes upwards of one million Muslims to the city for the hajj on an annual basis, most coming from all over the world, including countries hostile to Saudi Arabia such as Iran. This year, the hajj is formally expected to begin on May 25, though the mass influx of foreign visitors has already begun. The Saudi government is expecting about 1.5 million people to participate in hajj activities.

The World Health Organization (W.H.O.) has identified two significant public health threats ongoing in the past month: an outbreak of the rat-transmitted disease hantavirus on board a cruise ship crossing the Atlantic, and a growing outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Operations are currently ongoing in Argentina to find the source of the hantavirus outbreak and contain it, while in DRC, health workers are facing major security challenges as mobs denying the existence of Ebola attack informal treatment centers and seek to retrieve the bodies of their loved ones.

The W.H.O. announced this week that it considers the potential of a global Ebola emergency to be low, but its officials have also conceded they are behind in studying the situation as it took about a month for authorities in the epicenter of the Congolese outbreak to identify the spread of the disease. World governments and observers alike have nonetheless expressed concern that the outbreak could spiral out of control and spread beyond Africa if not contained. The state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Friday that the country’s health authorities issued a statement affirming they are prepared to screen visitors and implement proper public health protocols in light of these concerns. (Read More)