Saudi Arabia has closed off the holiest sites in Islam to foreign pilgrims over the coronavirus, disrupting travel for thousands of Muslims already en route.
Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Saudi Arabia on Thursday closed off the holiest sites in Islam to foreign pilgrims over the coronavirus, disrupting travel for thousands of Muslims already headed to the kingdom and potentially affecting plans later this year for millions more ahead of the fasting month of Ramadan and the annual hajj pilgrimage.
Those Iranians who have fallen ill include Vice President Masoumeh Ebtekar, better known as “Sister Mary,” the English-speaking spokeswoman for the students who seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and sparked the 444-day hostage crisis, state media reported. The outbreak's epicenter in Iran is the holy city of Qom, where the faithful are drawn to a famous Shiite shrine that has stayed open despite calls by the civilian government for it and other sites to be closed. Authorities have canceled Friday prayers in Qom, Tehran and other cities.
By leaving the suspension of travel to the holy sites open-ended, Saudi Arabia has raised the possibility of disruption for Ramadan and the hajj. "This is a long-awaited journey for me and my four members of family," said Achmad Warsito, a disappointed pilgrim in Indonesia. “No words can describe how I feel today.”
Indonesian who are scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia for a minor pilgrimage, called 'Umrah', rest at a waiting area as they are turned away from their flights at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang. Picture: Tatan Syuflana/AP “We do not need to wait for the first case to emerge in Saudi Arabia’s holy sites," the letter said. "The time for preparedness is now.”
"Given the worldwide spread of the virus and the global nature of the umrah, it makes sense from a public health and safety point of view,” he said, “especially since the Iranian example illustrates how a religious crossroads can so quickly amplify the spread and reach of the virus.”
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