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Covid-19: Saudi urges Islamic nations to wait before making Haj plans, Pakistani minister reveals

Islamabad - Kingdom wants Covid situation to get better before allowing annual pilgrimage.

Published: Fri 12 Feb 2021, 1:57 PM

Updated: Fri 12 Feb 2021, 2:42 PM

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Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Noor-UL-Haq Qadri on Friday said that government will discuss the conditions and flexibilities for Pakistani pilgrims to perform Haj 2021 with the Saudi Arabian government.

Talking to a private news channel, Qadri revealed that Saudi Arabia has asked Islamic countries to wait before making any plans to attend the annual Haj pilgrimage until there was more clarity over the deadly coronavirus pandemic, adding, hopefully within next two months the situation of Covid-19 would be further improved as vaccine is available.

He said we are aware of people’s concerns regarding Haj, adding that he is “constantly in touch with the Saudi Arabian authorities in this regard”.

Noor-UL-Haq Qadri said that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has not signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Pakistan regarding Haj yet.

It should be noted that Saudi Arabia allowed a limited number of pilgrims (10,000 people) to perform Haj last year in view of the coronavirus pandemic, he added.

He said Saudi government was closely monitoring the coronavirus situation and collecting data from all countries. However, Saudi government will inform Pakistan as soon as the situation gets better, he said.

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Pakistan will have a meeting with the Saudi Arabian government and they will explain the situation and conditions. God willing, when everything is clear, we will plan accordingly, he mentioned.

For now, we are unable to inform public about the number of pilgrims who will attend the annual Hajj 2021 from Pakistan but we will have to wait for the final decision of Saudi government in this regard, he added.

Replying a query, minister said the government of Saudi Arabia has made it very clear that it will only allow Haj to take place under the Kingdom’s coronavirus safety protocols.

He said Pakistani government would also provide Covid-19 vaccination doses to those wishing to perform Haj this year.

He said a media awareness campaign would be launched with a focus on health requirements of Saudi government and recommendations for those travelling to Saudi Arabia for Haj.

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