Meningitis Vaccination for pilgrims
The Peninsula News said vaccination against infectious diseases, especially meningitis, has been made mandatory for people travelling to Saudi Arabia for performing Umrah, say tour operators based in Qatar.
The health requirements issued by Saudi Arabia for Haj and Umrah pilgrims actually included vaccination against meningococcal meningitis but this rule was not strictly implemented in the case of Umrah.
However, the Saudi authorities are no more allowing in Umrah pilgrims from other countries who have not taken the required vaccination before their departure to the holy lands, say tour organizers.
The new rule follows a recent ban imposed by Saudi authorities on the entry of foreigners to the country in private vehicles for the purpose of performing Umrah.
Representative of a community organisation operating Umrah trips for expatriates said the organizers were in for a shock, when they got information about the new rule just a day before the pilgrims’ departure last week.
“Earlier vaccination was mandatory only for Haj pilgrims. Our Umrah group was all set for departure when we came to know about the new rule. We had to rush to get all of them vaccinated in the last moment so that they will not be turned away at the Saudi border,” he said, adding that many aspiring pilgrims are still not aware of the new rule.
Tour operators say that the number of people travelling from Qatar for Umrah has dropped significantly after a recent decision by the Ministry of Interior banning visitors from going for Umrah. Earlier a number of expatriates used to bring their families and relatives on visit to Qatar for the purpose of performing the pilgrimage.
