Saudi Arabia has temporarily suspended arrivals by foreigners for the Umrah pilgrimage and tourists from two dozen countries where the new coronavirus has spread, according to a report in Reuters, in hopes that the Kingdom might stay head of the looming threat of a pandemic.
The coronavirus, or COVID-19, originated in Wuhan, China, and has spread rapidly across the globe, infecting more than 80,000 with over 2,700 dead.
Some 2 million pilgrims are expected in late July for the week-long haj, the world’s largest annual gathering of Muslims.
The virus has also roiled international markets, sending bourses across the world down and driving fears of a global economic slowdown.
Another variant of the coronavirus, MERS, originated in Saudi Arabia, but its spread was largely contained by Saudi authorities. MERS, by percentages, is far deadlier, with roughly 40% of those infected dying.
As host of Islam’s two holiest sites, Saudi Arabia has an annual challenge with keeping the millions who visit safe and healthy. In recent years, fears over the spread of MERS and Ebola were met with regulations from authorities preventing certain countries from sending pilgrims to the Kingdom.
