Saudi Arabia: Domestic pilgrims must take two more vaccines before Haj

Riyadh: The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ( KSA) has announced that domestic pilgrims inside the Kingdom who will be performing Haj this year, must take two additional vaccinations before performing the rituals.

The Ministry of Health revealed that the necessary vaccinations for pilgrims inside the Kingdom include the following

• Meningitis, for those who did not receive vaccination during the past five years, and for the time of vaccination at least 10 days before going for Haj.

• Seasonal influenza, for those who have not received the vaccination, and for the time of vaccination, at least 10 days before going for Haj.

It is noteworthy that, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah said on April 9 that eligible pilgrims this year must be under 65, fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and present a negative PCR test result of a sample collected within 72 hours from departure to the kingdom.

The total number of vaccines approved in the Kingdom for COVID-19 is ten.

Ten approved vaccines are

• Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, two doses

• Moderna vaccine, two doses

• Oxford-AstraZeneca, two doses

• Janssen, one dose

• Covovax, two doses

• Nuvaxovid (NUVAXOVID), two doses

• Sinopharm, two doses

• Sinovac, two doses

• Covaxin, two doses

• Sputnik V, two doses

On Wednesday, June 15, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced the results of the electronic lottery for pilgrims from inside the Kingdom. 297,444 applications were registered in the electronic lottery for citizens and residents inside the Kingdom for the Haj season 1443 AH, of which 62 per cent are for the male category, and 38 per cent for females.

Haj is one of the five pillars of Islam, a once-in-a-lifetime duty for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it. 2020 witnessed an exceptional season for Haj and in consideration of the “COVID-19” pandemic.

Haj 2022 officially begins on the 8th of Dhul-Hijjah and ends on the 13th day of the same Islamic month. This year it falls between July 7 to 12. One million international and domestic pilgrims will perform Haj this year.