Shiite pilgrims visiting Qom, Mashhad identified as source of disease across Gulf. FMTNews
Access to Qom, a city of 1.2 mil and epicentre of the outbreak in Iran, remains free with no quarantine enforced.
At least part of the cause appears to be an over-powerful clergy, unwilling to interfere with religious observance. “The biggest question is why Qom has not been quarantined,” said Mehdi, a 28 year-old photographer who lives and works in Qom. On Wednesday, the normally bustling Grand Bazaar was deserted, yet people were still visiting the Imamzadeh mosques –mausoleums for the lesser offspring of Holy Imams related to the Prophet Mohammed – as well the Fatima Masoumeh shrine, according to Hamid, a driver for Snapp, the Iranian equivalent of Uber.
For Qom, pilgrimage is critical. The bustling city is visited by about 20 million domestic and 2.5 million foreign tourists per year.
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