Saudi Arabia sets strict health criteria for Haj 2025, urges vulnerable groups to postpone

The Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah issued a stricter health advisory for Haj pilgrims planning to undertake the annual pilgrimage in 2025. It recommended only healthy and physically fit individuals perform the pilgrimage as the arduous and strenuous pilgrimage involves walking up to 25km in a day in the extreme summer heat of Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi Ministry of Health recommended that individuals who are elderly (over 65), have chronic diseases, such as heart, kidney, or respiratory issues, or diabetes, have immune deficiencies, whether congenital or acquired, have cancer, are terminally ill, are pregnant, or are children under 12 should consider postponing their Haj and Umrah pilgrimage this year.

This recommendation is made for pilgrim's safety, as these groups may be at a higher risk for health complications, especially in the context of the challenges posed by the pilgrimage environment.

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More than 1,300 pilgrims reportedly died in this year's Haj as extreme heat swept across Saudi Arabia and the holy city of Makkah. The deaths were due to "walking long distances under direct sunlight without adequate shelter or comfort". The fatalities also included elderly people and those suffering from chronic illnesses.

Temperatures that hit high of 51.8℃ hammered the nearly two million people who flocked the holy city Makkah for this year's Haj. It was "extremely challenging", said pilgrims who reported seeing "people fainting all around".

The Saudi health ministry specified several requirements that visitors must meet to obtain an entry visa for Haj and Umrah. These health regulations include:

MERS-COV precautions:

The Saudi Ministry of Health also advises all pilgrims to comply with common public health guidelines to curb the spread of respiratory infectious disease, which can be summarised as follows:

Yellow fever

All travellers arriving from countries or areas at risk of yellow fever must present a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate showing that the person was vaccinated at least ten days and at most ten years before arrival at the border. In case of the absence of such a certificate, the individual will be placed under strict surveillance for six days from the date of vaccination or the last date of potential exposure to infection, whichever is earlier.

Meningococcal meningitis

Visitors arriving for the purpose of Umrah or Haj pilgrimage or for seasonal work are required to submit a certificate of vaccination with the quadrivalent (ACYW135) vaccine against meningitis issued no more than three years and no less than ten days before arrival in Saudi Arabia. The responsible authorities in the visitor’s country of origin should ensure that adults and children over the age of two years are given one dose of the quadrivalent polysaccharide (ACYW135) vaccine.

For visitors arriving from countries in the African meningitis belt (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Cote d’Ivoire, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and the Sudan), in addition to the above stated requirements, ciprofloxacin tablets (500 mg) chemoprophylaxis will be administered at port of entry to lower the rate of carriers.

Vaccination with quadrivalent (ACYW135) vaccine is required for:

1. All citizens and residents of Madinah and Makkah who have not been vaccinated during the past 3 years;

2. All citizens and residents undertaking the Haj;

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